Atonement
by gleechild
Summary: G is back and stirring up a bit of trouble. S, why do you seem so scared? G isn't that scary... or is she? You know you love me, XOXO Gossip Girl. Season 1
1. Chapter 1

**Written on April 30, 2008 after Desperately Seeking Serena aired.**

* * *

**Chapter One**

* * *

Saturday was one of the worst days of Serena van der Woodsen's life since she had returned from boarding school. It was one of the worst for many reasons.

She woke up not knowing where she was, how she got there, or what she had done the previous night. She was too late for the SAT, one of the most important tests for her future. She was forced to ask Chuck for help, once again. And the worst reason of all…

She had to shut Dan out. Dan already knew she was lying to him, keeping something from him. His coming to visit her at Chuck's suite was the icing on the cake from hell. But she had to make her excuses. She had to do it.

Because the thought of him knowing the truth was enough to make her take the next flight to Antarctica—even France, her best friend's choice, wasn't sanctuary enough.

Serena was hoping that Georgina would take her words to heart and just leave her alone. What did Georgina have to gain by coming around again? She knew that Serena wasn't interested in partying and that's what Georgie wanted to do.

It made sense to Serena anyway.

But she was wrong.

_Very wrong._

* * *

A week went by and things were not looking good on the Serena and Dan home front.

She knew that keeping the truth from Dan would upset him, and he had this sixth sense that just _knew_ that no matter what she said, she wasn't telling him the full truth. She had lied to him—a migraine, food poisoning, missing the SATs—and he was losing his trust in her.

The pressure was starting to suffocate her. She was afraid that she was going to lose everything she'd worked so hard to re-build in the past year.

And little forget-me-nots from Georgina weren't making life any easier. Thus far she'd only received little notes and a few video messages on her phone. It was mainly Georgie talking about some wild party she should join in on. She had to leave the video messages and texts because Serena hadn't answered one phone call since her last visit to tell G in no uncertain terms that she wasn't to contact her again.

Serena was hoping that Georgina might back off.

Then she got the call.

* * *

"Serena, I see Georgina's back in town and up to some of her old tricks."

"Wha… um, really?" she stuttered into her phone. "How do you know?"

"You didn't know?" Nate asked. "Weird, I just thought you'd know…"

"How would I know?" Serena said quickly. "She's been MIA for the past year. I haven't even spoken to her on the phone."

"Well, yeah… but I was out with a friend when I ran into her. She seemed surprised to see me too," Nate said. "I just assumed you knew."

"You were wrong," Serena said. Her mind raced for something else to talk about. She didn't want to continue this conversation with Nate. In fact, she didn't want to talk to him anymore. Maybe if she brought up the subject of Blair, he'd get off the phone fast.

That's exactly what she intended to do until he dropped a bomb.

"Then why was she with Dan when me and Vanessa met up with him?" Nate asked, perplexed.

"W-w-what?" Serena said softly, trying not to say the word too loudly. She was trying to hide the shock and panic flooding her.

"She was even playing one of those games you two used to play where she was pretending to be someone else. Sarah, I believe it was?" Nate said, laughing. "I think she made Vanessa a little uncomfortable though. I said 'hey Georgie' and Dan said something about Georgie being the name of her dog. She just laughed it off, her usual self. Vanessa wanted to split soon after though, but it was still wild running into her. I assumed you were going to meet up with them and already knew she was back—which is why I'm calling."

He paused. "I wonder why she was with Dan then. Small world." He said it as if Dan and Georgina had really just ran into each other and were new acquaintances.

"Nate, I really have to go," Serena said. She had to call Dan, but what would she say to him? _Oh God,_ she thought, _I don't know what to do!_

"Um, alright," Nate sputtered.

Serena didn't wait for a 'goodbye'; she hung up her cell phone and began pacing.

Why was Dan hanging out with Georgina? Sure, he was allowed to have his own friends, but what was going on? What new game was Georgina trying to pull? And she couldn't tell Dan _not_ to hang out with her because then she'd have to tell Dan who Georgina was which would open a whole other can of worms.

She was upset and it was showing. She sat down, trying to calm her nerves…

Because probably being at Blair's was not the best place for this to come out.

"What's wrong, S?" Blair asked as she came back into the room. "You seem upset about something."

Serena cursed her unlucky stars. Blair was usually so self-involved in her latest plot that she didn't always notice when someone else was going through something big. Trust Blair Waldorf to choose this instant to show that she really did care about her. Then she felt bad because she knew Blair loved her as much as she loved Blair. She shouldn't be thinking such disparaging things about her. She just really didn't want to have this discussion with her.

"Nothing," Serena said, taking a deep breath and trying to get a hold of her self.

"Why don't I believe that?" Blair asked, shaking her head.

"I really should go, B," Serena said, standing up quickly.

"Go? You just got here," Blair said. "What's really going on? What aren't you telling me?"

"I have to get home," Serena said jerkily. "That was my mom. She said something about dinner."

"Your mom? On a Friday night? Nice try Serena," Blair said knowingly. "Come on, I'm your best friend. You can tell me anything." She was really getting worried. She hadn't seen Serena looking quite this scared and pale in a very long time. What was going on? They were just supposed to hang out this evening, girls' night in… or out, depending on what they decided.

Serena didn't want to answer. She felt really bad about lying to Blair. She had promised herself she wouldn't do that again, but there were some things she could never tell her—no matter what.

"I'm not going to let you leave without telling me something," Blair said. "You might as well spill." Her interest was very piqued and she was going into commander mode. She wanted to know something and she wasn't going to quit until the information was given.

Serena knew that she could just walk out of here without saying a word.

But she also knew that things would get weird with Blair then. She was already so tired of having to lie to Dan. She was tired of having to avoid Chuck because he kept doggin' her every move for the truth too. If she hadn't even told Blair, what made Chuck think she was going to tell _him_?

She didn't want anyone to know… and she wasn't going to speak a word. But she could at least give Blair something so that Serena didn't walk out of this room right now and have Blair trust her a little less too.

"Georgina is back," Serena finally said.

A look of disgust spread over Blair's face. "How… lovely," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "But I still don't see… oh, you think she's going to persuade you to dive back into the world of alcohol and partying?"

Blair had always hated Georgina. She was even a little jealous of the girl. Not of the partying and wild behavior—Blair never wanted to be like that, or she would have had the perfect opportunity to give in when her reputation was destroyed—but of her relationship with Serena. Before, when Serena wasn't with Blair, she was almost always with Georgina or some guy.

Blair always had to rescue Serena from scrapes she got into with Georgina, and she always wondered if she fully got the entire picture of those little "fun times" or if she was only getting the dish on what Serena wanted her to know… or could remember.

Serena managed to give Blair a small nod. It was the best she could do. That was only part of the reason—but it was all she could give Blair just now.

"Don't worry, S," Blair said reassuringly. "You've been doing so well. You haven't been doing any of those old things at all. I've been so proud of you. Just don't go near Georgina if you're worried."

"Me staying away from Georgina isn't what I'm worried about," Serena said. "It's her staying away from me."

"Just ignore her and maybe she'll go away?" Blair said hopefully.

"She keeps calling and texting me, wanting to party," Serena said. She thought the same thing as Blair at first but she already knew that wasn't going to happen.

"Don't go," Blair said simply, shrugging her shoulders.

Serena sighed. She couldn't make Blair understand without mentioning the latest development with Dan, which would make Blair ask why she didn't just tell Dan about Georgina… which would then lead to the secret Serena was trying to keep.

"It's not that simple," Serena said.

"Yes, it is," Blair said. She walked over to Serena and put an arm around her shoulders, smiling. "Chill out Serena, everything will be fine. You're not the same girl you were last year. Everyone knows it. It's only a matter of time before Georgina does too."

Serena forced a smile and tried to nod. It didn't come out very convincing…

Mainly because Georgina already knew that Serena had changed and she wasn't happy about it, not at all.

Serena couldn't help but feel a sickness spreading through her stomach at the thought that Dan might only be the beginning…

* * *

_To be continued…_


	2. Chapter 2

**Written on May 1, 2008; after Desperately Seeking Serena**

* * *

**Chapter Two**

* * *

"Where are you?"

"Out," Dan said abruptly into his cell phone. Then he decided to give a little more, "with a friend. "

"Oh," Serena said quietly. At least he wasn't lying to her. She already knew he was out with someone.

"Well, I thought maybe we could get together? Meet me at The Palace?" Serena asked. It was either join Dan, or get him away from Georgina. Of the two options, only the later was going to happen.

"I can't tonight, I'm busy," Dan said. He knew he'd just get the same look she'd given him all week. Ever since he realized that she was keeping things from him, he couldn't help but feel betrayed. Seeing her shut down and close him out felt like running into a brick wall—it hurt.

"With your friend…" Serena said slowly, dragging out the last word. She trusted Dan fully, but she knew Georgina… was Georgie making a play for Dan to toy with Serena?

"Yeah," Dan cleared his throat. "Not anyone you know. We're waiting for her boyfriend to show; then we're going to a movie." He didn't know why he was telling her this, but he recognized that tone in her voice from when Vanessa first came to town. He didn't want to make her think anything weird was going on. He was hurt… but he didn't want anyone else.

"Oh," Serena said, feeling better that at least Georgina hadn't tried anything with Dan yet, although she knew Georgina was lying about the boyfriend thing. No Prince was going to deign to travel all the way to New York City just to go to a rinky-dink theater in Brooklyn… if Georgie was even dating that prince. Chuck had really screwed up with his sources this time.

"Look, I'll call you tomorrow," Dan finally said, wanting to end the conversation. "We need to talk."

Serena could practically hear the "duh duh dummm" resounding through her ears over those words. Everyone knew that "we need to talk" was code for "I want to break up". But Dan couldn't mean that, could he?

"'kay…" she managed to whisper.

"Bye," Dan said before closing his phone. She was frustrating him. Half of him would love to meet up with her that night, but he didn't think the past week had changed anything. He also thought she might ask if she could join him and Sarah and her boyfriend, Jack, at the movies. But she didn't ask.

He walked back over to his table where Sarah was sitting, still alone.

"Sorry about that," Dan said as he settled in. He nodded toward the empty chair next to her. "No word yet?"

"He's going to meet us at the theater," Georgina said with a smile. She was lying through her teeth. She knew that there was no way she'd be able to talk Dan into meeting up with her alone. She'd gotten a read on him this past week. She knew that he was one of the good guys—the kind that her and Serena rarely ever saw or spent any time around. He hadn't said much about Serena other than to tell Sarah that he had a girlfriend.

So, she created a boyfriend as a front to get to know this guy better. Dan was certainly not what she expected… or maybe he was.

Serena had changed so much, trying to forget about her past, that she had managed to get involved with a boy who embodied the essence of who Serena wanted to be.

"Oh," Dan said distracted, "okay… I guess we should get going if we don't want to miss the beginning." He stood up, held a hand out for Sarah like a true gentleman, and they left the place.

"So who were you talking to?" Georgina asked, as if she didn't already know. It had to be Serena. She smiled to herself. She hadn't anticipated running into Nate, but it was fun to wonder what Serena was thinking about her being with Dan.

"Oh, just my girlfriend," Dan said.

"Why isn't she joining us?" she asked innocently, as if she really couldn't understand.

"She's busy," Dan lied. "She had plans to do the whole 'girl thang' with her best friend." Well, he knew she was supposed to do something with Blair that day, he didn't know if it was still a happening or not.

"Well, let's go," she said, pretending giddiness.

* * *

"I think it's time to just call it a night," Dan said, starting to feel extremely uncomfortable.

"Oh, but wait, maybe we could—," Georgina started to suggest a club, but Dan interrupted.

"Sarah, I'm sorry," Dan said, trying to get out of this potentially bad situation. "Your boyfriend is obviously a no-show, and while I'm sorry about that, I just really think it would be best if I went home now." He looked at her expectantly. She had to know why he wasn't cool with the idea of continuously hanging with her after the movie. This entire night was starting to resemble a date more and more and he didn't like it.

Georgina sighed, "Well, if you want to spend a Friday night all alone, by yourself…" She knew she was losing fast, but at least she'd gotten to spend some time with him in search of some ammunition to use again Serena. She had originally assumed that she'd be able to get him in that theater and use her wiles to make things a little more interesting… but that was before she realized that Dan was one of those rare loyal breeds too. And truthfully, he was really beginning to bore her.

"That's exactly what I want," Dan agreed, nodding his head enthusiastically. "Take care, Sarah."

"You too," Georgina said, giving him a practiced smile.

As she watched him walk away, her practiced smile became a full-on smirk before she reached in her pocket for her cell phone which she knew had a message waiting for her.

She also knew, without even looking, that it had to be Serena. She wasn't expecting a text from anyone else. Ever since she'd taken off for parts unknown, she made friends here and there but… they were more like acquaintances. The only real friend Georgina had ever had was Serena van der Woodsen—the same girl who now wanted nothing to do with her.

That was a problem. Georgie liked to get things her way, and when you crossed her and, what's more, _hurt_ her, she didn't cry like most people would. She got even.

But, the only thing Georgina had on Serena that would destroy her was something that would also get _Georgina_ arrested.

The only other option was to torture Serena, and she would do so mercilessly. This new Serena seemed to care for a lot of people. She cared what they thought about her, and she cared about doing the "good" thing now.

She'd have to work on Dan a little more but now that Serena was tipped off to her plans, it was time to let Serena know that she wasn't going anywhere.

Though the part about using Serena's loved ones to get to Serena, well… she'd keep that to herself for now.

* * *

"Hello, love."

Serena was beginning to hate that tone to Georgina's voice. That tone that was one of amusement and clearly said, "I'm toying with you."

She left Blair's as soon as she could get away. She wanted to call Dan. She made some excuses and told Blair that she'd been acting weird around Dan too because of the whole Georgina thing and wanted to explain everything to him now that she'd told Blair all about it and felt _better_ about the situation.

Fortunately, Blair believed her and didn't try to stop her that time.

Serena called Dan almost immediately upon leaving. That conversation didn't go well. Then she sent a text to Georgina and waited for the inevitable call back.

Defeated and feeling sick, she returned to The Palace and went to her suite.

She tried to put the whole situation out of her mind and hung out with Eric for a while. Her brother was still a little obtuse about the whole Chuck moving out thing, but he couldn't be ticked at her forever. She and Chuck hadn't spoken about what to say to Bart to get him back in—truthfully, she really enjoyed her bathing time and didn't want to risk another dirty day… though something made her think Chuck might be past that now.

"Cut the crap Georgina," Serena snapped. "Stay the hell away from my boyfriend."

"Imagine my surprise when Dan's friend Vanessa showed up with none other than Nathaniel Archibald," Georgina said smugly. "Thought B had him under lock and key. My, how things do change in a year."

"Look, I don't know what your game is, but that's it! It's over! Just leave. Go back to Switzerland, Belgium, Balfour, wherever the hell you came from," Serena said angrily.

"Careful S," Georgina said with deadly earnest. "You already hurt my feelings once this week… you don't want to do it again."

"Or what? You know you won't say anything," Serena said. "Just forget you knew me! Why are you even bothering? It's not like I'm going to change my mind. And you said you didn't need anyone in your life who doesn't want to be there. Well, I don't want to be. Just pack your bags, get on the first flight out, and don't look back."

"See," Georgina said icily, her anger flaring astronomically, "there you go, hurting my feelings. What a shame. Guess I'm going to have to stick around a little while longer."

"Georgina, stop!" Serena exclaimed, panic flooding her insides.

"Sorry, S," Georgina said, feigning innocence. "I'm in the mood for a little more fun at your expense."

"Georgina…" Serena said, her anger wilting in the face of G's threat.

"You know you love me," Georgina said impishly and sweetly. "Goodnight. Get some rest sweetie. You're going to need it."

With that, Georgina slammed her phone shut, not even hearing Serena's attempt to make peace.

Serena wanted to scream! If only she could tell Dan about the psycho girl trying to use him to get to her… but she couldn't. She just couldn't. He would want details—every single detail. And out of everyone in her life, Dan Humphrey—with morals and self-righteousness pouring out of every pore—was the _last_ person who should know.

She just needed to be more attentive. She would talk to Dan tomorrow and try to explain everything away as best as possible. She would come up with something. She'd been lying to him since Georgina came back, what's a few more lies to help bury the past?

She had to do it. There was no other alternative.

And when she fixed things with Dan, she could also figure out a way to make sure Dan had nothing else to do with this "Sarah" person.

Then Georgina's fun would be over.

She couldn't torture Serena by using Dan anymore…

_Right?_

* * *

_To be continued…_


	3. Chapter 3

**Written on May 2, 2008; after Desperately Seeking Serena**

* * *

**Chapter Three**

* * *

"Good m-m-morning," Serena started out cheerfully but ended on a slightly sour note.

After a restless night of vivid dreams that wouldn't quit, she got out of bed with relief to join her family for breakfast.

The relief evaporated instantly as she walked into the breakfast nook and discovered that there was a special guest at the table.

"Good morning, darling," Lily drawled out. She gave Serena a pointed look. "Look who's back and decided to grace us with her presence this morning." Lily could barely contain her disapproval. She had never liked Georgina, but she had to invite the girl to stay for breakfast—for propriety's sake.

"Uh, Georgina," Serena said with a stilted nod. She hesitantly went to the table, deciding that sitting next to Bart would be much better than sitting next to Georgina.

Georgina could care less about the seating arrangements. Bart was on one side of Lily and Eric was on the other. Georgina was sitting next to Eric. There was an empty chair between Georgina and Serena.

Georgina almost smirked when she noticed Serena inching her chair closer to Bart.

"S!" Georgina exclaimed. "This is so great, just like old times." She put a spoonful of eggs in her mouth, and grinned, closed-lip.

Serena barely looked at her. She managed to give a curt nod. She wasn't going to mention that Georgina had rarely ever joined the family for breakfast, or dinner for that matter. Georgina didn't like to be around Lily. Plus, she usually liked to party. That didn't leave much time for bonding with the "fam".

"And Eric!" Georgina exclaimed. She reached out and ruffled his bangs. "You sure have grown up this past year. Definitely gonna give the ladies a run for their money."

For some reason, Georgina had never been one of Eric's favorite people. It was probably because he'd witnessed too many arguments between his mother and Serena over this girl. Her touching him made him extremely uncomfortable. He slid his head to the side slowly, so as not to offend, and tried not to blush as he gave her a small smile.

"None are running just yet," Eric responded. He looked down at his plate and began eating much more quickly.

Serena bristled when Georgie touched Eric. She knew that finding G at the breakfast table wasn't a good thing… what was Georgina up to now?

"Just you wait, they will," Georgina said, giving Eric a flirtatious smile.

"So, Georgina," Lily said haughtily, "what have you been up to this past year? It's been so long since Serena's mentioned you." She very much disliked this girl and didn't mind getting in a thinly veiled dig. She gave Georgina an innocent look before tilting her head toward Bart, "Georgina and Serena used to be such close friends. Of course, not nearly as close as Serena and Blair, but Georgina was never too far away."

Bart nodded. He wanted to read his newspaper and check the business section but couldn't because there was a guest at the table. So he bided his time, eating his breakfast and making polite chit chat until he could get away. He was being attentive though. He knew how important Lily's children were to her and he wanted to continue to make an effort to bond with them, so getting to know some of Serena's friends would surely make him look good.

"It's an honor to have you join us, Miss Sparks," Bart said with a nod.

"Why, thank you Mr. Bass," Georgina said formally. She was trying to contain her laughter. She had heard about the impending nuptials of Lily and Bart but until she saw them close up, she hadn't really believed it. It made sense in her mind though. Lily had always been a stuck-up snooty bitch to Georgie, and Bart didn't seem capable of smiling. They were perfect for each other.

"Georgina," Serena said hastily, lest Bart do something stupid and invite G to come over whenever she'd like, "I thought you were only staying a few days before you were on your way back to… Switzerland, right?"

"Switzerland," Lily exclaimed, "how lovely." Then she looked at Serena because she realized something else from Serena's statement. "I thought Georgina had only just arrived. When did you arrive, dear?" she asked, looking toward Georgina now.

"Last week," Georgina said simply. "I did call for Serena last Friday, remember? Serena was _so_ tired from studying that she crashed at my place before the SATs?" Lily was really starting to get on her nerves. It was bad enough that Serena wanted her to leave, but now Lily was bringing up the fact that Serena had really put her out of her mind for the past year… not even mentioning her or having anything to do with her. The real kicker was Lily referring to Blair as Serena's number one best friend over Georgina. That made Georgina decide to stir some things up for Serena with Lily.

"Oh, that was you?" Lily said. One of the maids had taken the call and given her the message. She hadn't known which friend, but she never once thought it could possibly be Georgina. She looked at Serena, "Tired from studying, hmm?" She didn't once believe that her daughter spent all night with Georgina studying for the SAT.

Serena forced herself to look at her mother, "Uh huh." She had been happy to hear Lily's systematic politely veiled put-down of Georgina until the tables turned and now Lily was looking at her knowingly and not with a little disappointment.

"Well, I guess we'll see how well the extra _studying_ helped when your score comes back," Lily said. She highly doubted that Serena did well. She knew how Serena was when she hung out with Georgina. She was going to have to have a long talk with her. She had seen how much Serena had changed this past year. She was anxious about the thought that Georgina could send that all crashing down.

Serena just nodded. She knew that her mother would probably be surprised when the scores came back so high. Serena already planned on re-taking them. She didn't know if she'd score as well as the short redhead… and she knew colleges took the best scores anyway… but it felt less wrong if she did it herself. She could still kick Chuck for making her cheat.

"Wow, S," Georgina said, feigning innocence, "you made it to the test on time? I thought for sure you had slept too late."

Serena jerked her head up and toward Georgina, her eyes widening.

"Serena?" Lily said, looking from Georgina to her daughter, puzzled. "You _did_ take the test, didn't you?"

Serena shifted and glared at Georgie. "Yes, mother. I took the test."

Lily looked at Serena for a long moment. Long enough that Serena had to give her mother a reassuring smile. "I tried my best. I think it went well. I told you that."

"Yes… yes, you did," Lily said.

"So, Switzerland," Eric said, deciding that the SAT discussion needed to end like _now_, "When _are_ you returning?" He tried not to sound rude about it. He was never one to be rude… but he could already see the budding of an argument between Lily and Serena and he would rather they just get along. Georgina always did bring out the worst in the entire family.

Georgina gave Eric a sidelong glance. She wasn't naïve. She knew that Eric was also saying, without really saying it, that he wanted her to leave. _Feel the love in this room_, she rolled her eyes inwardly. She couldn't help but feel upset. She was getting rejected from every angle.

She guessed it was about time to take her leave.

Besides, she'd already gotten the lay of the land and was pretty sure where her little game was going next.

* * *

"B, I know I should have told you, but I just wanted to forget about it," Serena said desperately into her phone.

"So… you partied with Georgina last weekend," Blair said, clarifying. She sighed. This made her pep talk yesterday go completely out the window.

"Yes, and I told her I didn't want to hang out anymore, but she won't listen," Serena said. "She came by for breakfast this morning and stirred up all sorts of trouble!"

"I bet," Blair said, she picked up a file and started in on her nails.

"After she left, mom was so disappointed! She started in on me at first, then she decided that me and her needed some _alone_ time," Serena said, frustrated. "I tried to tell her that I had plans with Dan, but she wouldn't hear it. So I got stuck going to Bliss and spending all day receiving massages, nail treatments, skin treatments, a facial. It was never ending!"

"Sounds like heaven," Blair said.

"Except I was too tense to relax," Serena explained.

"That _could_ be a problem," Blair said.

"And I didn't get to see Dan, and I really needed to," Serena said.

"Just tell him that you had a brief foray into your old self for two nights, and now it's over," Blair said simply. "He'll understand and I'm sure she'll leave soon and then everything will get back to normal."

"I can't tell him, I don't want him to know," Serena said. She was so frustrated. There were so many other things happening and both Blair and Dan were completely clueless. "And she's not going to leave. She told me last night. She wants to stay and stir up some more trouble. B, she's really freaking me out."

"Wow, she's really getting to you," Blair said, putting her file down and concentrating on the phone only.

"Yes, she is," Serena said frustrated.

"Why don't you just go see Dan now?" Blair suggested. "I mean, it's a little late, but he's probably home. It may be a Saturday night, but it _is_ Dan Humphrey. And he _will_ understand, Serena. Dan has proven time and again how much he loves you."

"I guess…" Serena said, thinking. Maybe she could surprise Dan. She wouldn't give him a chance to beg off. She'd just show up at the loft and talk to him, go ahead with her plans to cover up the past two weeks.

"It's the thing to do," Blair said firmly. "And everything will work out. You'll see. This will be over before you know it."

"That's what I'm afraid of," Serena muttered before hanging up. She was afraid that she and Dan would be over before she knew it.

* * *

Serena was taking a cab back to The Palace. She'd spent over two hours with Rufus and Jenny, eating dinner, and waiting for Dan. Rufus had suggested that she just call Dan to tell him she was there, but she said 'no'. She really wanted the option of surprise on her side. So she played cards with Rufus and waited patiently, composing her thoughts.

Of course, it didn't help that Dan was out and hadn't said when he'd be back. Rufus could have easily called and asked Dan where he was at and when he'd be home, but Serena told him not to. A part of her was trying to put off the talk as long as possible.

Finally, after waiting for all that time, Dan still wasn't back and Rufus indicated that he was ready to turn in for the night. It _was_ getting a little late. Jenny spilled that she had called Dan and he was out with Vanessa. She insisted that she hadn't said anything to Dan about Serena being at the loft, but she also said that Dan wasn't going to be home for a while.

Serena, relieved that Dan wasn't out with Georgina again, finally left.

She was getting out of the cab when her cell phone rang.

She flinched when she saw that the caller was Georgina, but she answered it before she thought better of it.

"At least we finally got to enjoy our eggs together," Georgina said impishly.

"Don't come to my home again," Serena snapped. "I've had you removed from the guest list. You won't be allowed in, not even announced."

"Oh, that's too bad," Georgina said. "I was really hoping to get to know Eric better. He really _has_ turned into quite a cutie. I'm sure I could show him a good time."

"Stay away from him," Serena almost yelled into her phone. She was tired of being played with. First Dan, now Eric? She was very freaked out.

"Aw, are you worried big bad Georgina will corrupt wittle Eric?" Georgina started laughing hysterically.

"Look, Georgina," Serena said, "playing with Dan is one thing. Just leave Eric alone. He doesn't need to deal with you messing with his head."

"But _Serena_," Georgina said, dragging out her name, "you're going to kill my fun."

"Sorry," Serena said sarcastically. "Somehow I think you'll survive."

"It's too bad really…" Georgina said with that tone that indicated she knew something Serena didn't know. "First you reject me, then Lily treats me like dirt. It's no wonder the demon in me has come out to play. Everyone hurting my feelings…it makes me want to do some hurting of my own."

"Georgina, I'm sorry," Serena said, not convincingly, "I'm not trying to hurt your feelings but you've manipulated me and tried to destroy all the progress I've made. I've spent the past year trying to change, and succeeded in doing so. You keep trying to bring me down. Please, don't take this out on anyone else. Dan, Eric, my mother. Let's just keep this between you and me."

"Well…" Georgina began. "I do have _one_ question for you…"

"Yes?" Serena asked, hoping this was Georgina about to give in and give up.

"Do you _know_ where your brother _is_?" Georgina asked before she started laughing.

To Serena's ears it sounded evil, like a witch. To her chest, the words settled and made everything move in slow motion as chills ran down her spine.

"What did you do?" Serena exclaimed.

Georgina just kept laughing, "Wouldn't you like to know?"

"What did you do!" Serena screamed into her phone.

Georgina hung up on her.

Serena started toward the elevator and pressed the button up to her suite. She was trying to remain calm. Georgina had to be lying. Eric wouldn't have gone anywhere with her. She couldn't have done anything to Eric. Eric should be at home, maybe in bed already asleep. He would be having nice, peaceful dreams and Georgina couldn't touch him.

She kept repeating that to herself over and over again. She was almost shaking from her nerves, impatience running through her as she waited for the elevator to get to their penthouse.

Finally she arrived at her floor and raced down the hall. She sped up the stairs and ran straight for her brother's room. She didn't even pause to knock; she opened the door and went inside, halting at the sight that greeted her.

"Serena?" Eric said, surprised. "Knock much?"

Serena tried to breathe. Her brother was sprawled on his bed, typing away on his laptop.

He was fine. He was home, safe and sound.

"Serena?" Eric asked, seeing the look on her face. "Are you okay? You look a little pale."

Serena couldn't speak. She just kept looking at her brother and finally couldn't hold back from rushing over to hug him.

He was startled but he accepted her ministrations and hugged her back. "Well, this is a surprise."

"I'm glad you're okay," Serena said softly.

"I'm glad you're okay, too," Eric said, confused.

Serena finally pulled back. She looked at him and saw the look on his face. She let out a relieved laugh. "Sorry, I just… I was just having a moment."

"_Okay_..." Eric said slowly.

"Good night, Eric," Serena said as she stood and backed to the door.

"Good night," Eric said with a shake of his head. He watched her leave before turning back to his laptop.

Serena walked out into the hall, closing the door behind her. She let out a deep relieved breath and rested her head back against the wall next to the door. She had been so scared for a minute. She couldn't believe Georgina had gotten her so bad.

She finally made her way to her room. She tossed her purse on her desk and kicked off her shoes.

She took her phone out of the purse and dialed a number she swore she was never going to call again.

"Nice try," she said, sarcastically, "You got me; you really got me."

"Oh, I did, huh?" Georgina asked, a smirk evident in her voice.

"Fortunately for you, Eric is home. My brother is safe and sound in his bed," Serena said.

"Serena, you are such a blonde sometimes!" Georgina said, laughing.

"I don't see what my hair color has to do with any of this," Serena snapped.

"But Serena," Georgina could feel the smile spread across her face.

"I never said which brother…"

* * *

_To be continued…_


	4. Chapter 4

**Written during May 6&7, 2008; after All About My Brother**

* * *

**Chapter Four**

* * *

"I only have one brother," Serena said slowly. She knew who Georgina was talking about of course, but she wanted to give her a hard time. She didn't once believe that Georgina was speaking the truth. It was _Chuck_. There was no need to panic here.

"Oh, really?" Georgina said, on the verge of laughter. "Surely you haven't forgotten Chuck already?"

"Georgina, please," Serena said, rolling her eyes, "Even if it were possible to pull one over on him, there isn't much you could do to Chuck that he wouldn't actually _enjoy_."

"Oh, I'm sure I could come up with something," Georgina said, giggling impishly. "It's all your fault really. I mean, I wouldn't want to hurt the people you care about if you hadn't hurt me."

"Well, you're batting zero here, Georgie," Serena said, injecting emotion into her voice to cover up the fact that she was lying, "I don't care about him. He's my mother's fiance's son. He doesn't even live with us. He means nothing to me."

"I don't believe you," Georgina said, drawling out her voice, smirk still evident in the sound.

"Well, you should," Serena insisted.

"Do you really expect me to believe that he means nothing to you when he was the first person you called last weekend?" Georgina said, feigning incredulousness.

Serena was silent.

"Didn't think I heard you, hmm?" Georgina said after a slight pause. "I heard the entire message you left for your newest brother dearest. And I guess he came through for you considering that you didn't miss the test. Just one more person in your life who is there for you no matter what. I used to have one of those people, Serena. Do you know what happened to her? Because I miss her. I think she's gone forever though. I really do."

"I still don't believe you did anything to him. You're just trying to send me on another wild goose chase," Serena finally said. She wasn't going to believe that Georgina had managed to bamboozle Chuck into something sinister. It just wasn't possible.

"Fine, don't believe me," Georgina said. "But you won't be able to resist checking up on him… will you?" She laughed. "Goodbye, Serena." She hung up.

Serena winced. She threw her phone away from her. She wasn't going to check up on Chuck. She didn't believe Georgina. She wasn't going to fall for her little trick again.

She paced back and forth in her room, looking at her phone and looking away. She hated to admit it, but Chuck had grown on her… and as much as she wanted to go to bed and forget the entire stupid conversation with Georgina… as much as she wanted to believe that it was just Georgina playing with her again… she couldn't resist.

She finally ran to her phone and called Chuck.

She waited impatiently as it rang and rang and finally went to voicemail. She winced and tried not to think anything was wrong just because he hadn't answered. He didn't always answer when she called, and it _was_ late on a Saturday night. He was probably out somewhere… not with Georgina of course… but somewhere?

She tried calling again but, once again, no one answered. She tried to think of what to do next. She didn't want to look like an idiot by leaving a voice mail on his phone asking if Georgina had tied him up somewhere… because… he really _would_ probably enjoy that. She cringed.

She sighed and slid back into her shoes. She would try his suite.

* * *

She started out knocking politely, a quick rat-a-tat, on the door but when he didn't answer, she found herself starting to panic as she increased her hits to full on pounding.

After almost a full minute, she gave up. She tried to think, not sure what to do. Should she call Georgina and demand to know where he was? But what if Chuck really was just out for the evening? He was notorious for not bothering to answer his phone when he was otherwise… occupied. She hated this. She hated that Georgina was freaking her out, she hated that she didn't know where Chuck was, she hated that he wasn't answering his phone, she hated the idea of Chuck being in trouble because of her… and, most of all, she hated that she cared whether he was okay or not.

"Argh!" she shouted in frustration.

"If I knew how badly you wanted to join me, I would have—," Chuck was standing at the door, hair clearly wet from the shower, wearing a robe. He was in the middle of making some pervy remark at finding that Serena was the one banging so impatiently at his door when he was interrupted.

"Chuck!" Serena almost squealed before she ran right at him and hugged him. The relief was too great that she didn't even think twice.

Pleasantly surprised though he was, he returned the unexpected gesture, smirking as per usual. "Knew I could wear you down."

Serena finally realized that she was hugging the devil incarnate wearing nothing more than a robe that was tied precariously at the waist.

"Gross," she said as she pulled back. "Where have you been? I've been trying to call and you… you… who takes a shower this late on a Saturday night?"

Chuck arched an eyebrow. "I felt dirty."

She walked past him, into the room. "I think that's a permanent stain."

Chuck just shrugged, turning to watch her pace nervously around the room. He let the door shut behind him. "So what's with the greeting? Not that I mind of course… you know, my bed is oddly unoccupied tonight, maybe you could fix that."

When she didn't respond, he wrinkled his brow in confusion. Something must be really bothering her.

"I'd offer you a drink, but I think I should slip into something a little less comfortable," he remarked. Not that he minded his current state of dress, but something told him things weren't quite right in the land of Serena.

"I'll help myself," Serena finally said, going over to pour a drink.

"You do that," Chuck said. He wondered to his dresser and started rummaging. "So, what's wrong?"

"Stupid, stupid, stupid," Serena muttered to herself, hardly hearing him. She wasn't going to call Georgina again. She would probably find great amusement in knowing that Serena had fallen for the trick again.

"What'd you do this time?" Chuck asked, finding a pair of boxers and socks. He paused after closing the drawer. "Or, should I say, what did Georgina do this time?"

He'd been trying to figure out what Georgina had on Serena all week, constantly teasing Serena about it, but she still hadn't spilled. Maybe he could get her to this time.

"She is such a bitch," Serena snapped. She tossed back a shot. Then she pushed the glass away as if it were evil. She only needed one drink. She wasn't going to get drunk.

"That's a given," he nodded. He went to his closet and found some slacks and a dress shirt. He figured he might as well dress for company. Something told him Serena wouldn't appreciate his pinstriped silk pajamas.

"She's toying with me," Serena said. She thought back to the horror of thinking Eric was in trouble. She needed another drink.

Chuck watched her pour it, shaking his head. "Come clean sis, talk to Chuck."

Serena tossed back the second shot, plopped the glass down and let out another scream of frustration after she swallowed. "Will you just shut up? Just let me sit here in silence without trying to drag information out of me! I've just had the worst fifteen minutes of my life! Apparently her newest game is trying to make me think she's done something to the people I care about!"

Chuck paused. He had just taken a shirt off a hanger and was reaching for a pair of pants when he realized where the hug had come from. He smirked, "So… you _care_ about me?"

She looked at him. "Get over your self," Serena snapped. She still couldn't believe she'd actually hugged him. He wasn't her brother. They weren't related. Nothing was going to change that.

Then why was she feeling more and more as if he were the big brother she'd never had? _God,_ she needed another drink.

"Sis, I'm flattered," he said, the smirk broadening. He finally grabbed the pants. As he started toward the bathroom to change, he tossed a few words over his shoulder, "Don't worry. I'm only going to the bathroom. Unless she plans on emerging from the pipes, I think I'm safe." He shook his head, a wry grin on his face.

Georgina must really be getting to Serena if she made her think that she did something to _him_. Chuck laughed as he started getting dressed.

Serena ignored his joke. She heard the bathroom door close before she left the bar stool and collapsed on the couch.

She knew that one day her past mistakes would come back to haunt her, but she had seriously hoped they would stay far in the past for a little while longer at least. Maybe wait for her to finish high school… college even! Then she could escape to South Asia and really teach English to children before going wherever else the wind took her…spending her time atoning for her mistakes by helping others. Something she'd never be able to do behind bars.

This shouldn't be happening. Georgina was just as responsible as Serena. Maybe two could play at this game… but what could Serena possibly do or say to Georgina that would scare _her_?

Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Georgina didn't have friends and family like Serena. Georgina's parents sent her to another continent for boarding school. Georgina's parents didn't even bother spending time with her when she _did_ return stateside.

Besides… Serena didn't have the heart to threaten anyone. Georgina obviously did… but she hadn't really done anything… maybe this was Georgina's way of saying that she'd still be willing to back off if only Serena made amends.

Given the alternative, Serena would try to pretend she wanted to make up with Georgina. She would try to befriend her once again. She didn't know how she'd be able to stomach it, but maybe she could hold out long enough for Georgina to air kiss her cheek and be on her merry way.

She knew this probably wouldn't work, but she couldn't come up with anything else.

So, once again, she was calling Georgina Sparks.

"Well, well, well," Georgina said sing-song-like into her phone, "Serena! Long time no talk to."

"Georgina, I'm sorry," Serena said softly, wincing at the words. "I know you only want to be friends and want things to be the same way they were before. I get that. I can't say that everything will be the same because I _have_ changed, but I'm willing to try to be friends again… party, hang out… just like we used to... well, maybe not every night, but how's tomorrow?" She tried to inflect as much soothing happy tunes in her voice as she could.

"Aw, Serena, giving up so easily?" Georgina asked in a sickening sweet voice. "You are so transparent. Of course you'd call and try to pretend now that you're getting scared. How's Chuck by the way?" She laughed. "Let me guess. It took you… four minutes to check in on him."

"Georgina…" Serena said, pleading.

"No? Oh, maybe three," Georgina said.

"So, tomorrow?" Serena asked hopefully.

"Nice try, S," Georgina said, a hard edge coming to her voice. "But I already told you. I'm done with trying to be friends."

Serena was trying to hold back her frustrated anger, but she couldn't. "And what? You're going to keep trying to play with my mind? Guess again Georgina. You've already cried wolf twice. A third time will _not_ get the same reaction."

"We'll see about that…" Georgina was back to her sing-song voice.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Serena snapped.

"Riddle me this…" Georgina started out. Then she started laughing, "God, I've always wanted to say that."

"Are you _really_ going to try again? Come on, Georgina," Serena said exasperated. "Even you know this is getting old. It doesn't matter what you say. I'm staying exactly where I am. I'm not going to believe you and you're just going to go away. You keep threatening, but you're nothing but words—no action. I'm calling your bluff Georgie. Screw your stupid riddle."

"See, I've got the riddle right here… and, oh, is the answer a good one," Georgina said. "And really, this is what one would call two birds with one stone… maybe even three…"

"Meaning?" Serena said, throwing her hand up in the air even though Georgina couldn't see her frustrated movement.

She looked toward the bathroom as Chuck finally re-emerged. She held a finger up to her mouth to indicate that he be silent. He just shrugged, nodded, and made his way over to the bar to pour a scotch for him self.

"Meaning, I get to do exactly what I threatened," Georgina said giddily. "I get to hurt Chuck."

"Get real G," Serena snapped. "You can't hurt him. He's right here with me. You can't touch him."

Chuck looked up from where he was pouring some scotch, quirking an eyebrow when he realized Serena was not only talking to Georgina but they were talking about him.

"And therein lies my riddle…" Georgina trailed off. "What's one thing in all the Upper East Side that both you and Chuck care about? If you can figure out the answer, you'll be one step closer to the fairest of them all."

With that, Georgina hung up.

Serena closed the phone and threw it toward the other end of the couch. She leaned forward and ran her hands through her hair, screaming out in frustration—she seemed to be doing that a lot tonight.

"Psycho!" Serena muttered. She couldn't believe she called. She just needed to write Georgina off completely. Delete her phone number… but then she wouldn't know if it was G calling.

"Why are you even bothering with her? Like you said, and like I very much agree, she can't hurt me, she can't touch me," Chuck murmured. "Mores the pity. Of course, I never really liked the girl."

"I don't know!" Serena said. "She's crazy! She's gone from misleading threats to speaking in riddles. What? Is she all of a sudden the Joker? Where's Batman when I need him?" She flopped back on the couch.

"A riddle?" Chuck murmured. "Oh, do tell." Riddles were a good exercise for wit.

"Something about the one thing in all of the Upper East Side we both care about," Serena smirked. "Like that's in anyway helpful."

"I must admit, I'm slightly disappointed," Chuck said. "That is a little lame considering there are _so_ many things to choose from. Sure she didn't say anything else?"

Serena closed her eyes and threw her arm across her eyes. "I don't know; why does this even matter? She's just playing another joke anyway. She wants me to go racing to do her bidding. Not anymore!"

"Here, here," Chuck said, toasting her with his glass. He decided to give Serena what she originally asked for—some silence… well, maybe a whole minute of it.

Serena rolled her eyes and slumped even deeper into the couch if that was possible. She didn't know what to do next, but she should probably get out of here. She was really pondering having another shot. She knew she shouldn't, but maybe just one more for the road.

She got up and wondered up next to Chuck. She quickly poured a drink and raised it in toast to him, looking at him in the mirror across the bar.

"To the fairest of them all," she said, raising her glass.

"And what, that would be you?" he muttered, smirking that she could think about her looks when she was so upset.

"No, it's something…" Serena's voice trailed off for a second, something tried to connect in her brain but she lost it, so she continued, "something Georgina said."

Then everything connected.

She dropped the shot glass. It didn't break, but the liquid did pour out everywhere.

Chuck shook his head, grabbing a towel to toss on the mess. "Didn't think you were that drunk yet."

Serena started backing away from the counter, shaking her head. Then she started murmuring, "no, no, no…" over and over again.

"What's with you?" Chuck said, looking at her and frowning.

"I know the answer to the riddle," Serena whispered, her eyes going wide.

"Do tell," Chuck said, intrigued, not willing to believe she would be able to figure out the stupid thing. It wasn't even a riddle. It could be anything. They actually had a lot more in common than most people knew, so they had a tendency to care about the same things. And the word 'care' could be used so loosely.

Serena didn't answer. Instead she turned and went searching for her cell phone which she had thrown earlier.

"Where is it? Where is it?" she kept muttering, getting down on her knees to see if it had fallen on the floor and bounced under the couch.

"Now I'm very intrigued," Chuck said. "Serena van der Woodsen on her hands and knees? In my suite? This has got to be good."

Serena finally found her cell phone. She found the number she was looking for and dialed it quickly.

It went straight to voicemail. That was impossible. That would mean the phone was turned off. That phone was never turned off. Well, maybe once… but there weren't any Masquerade Balls happening anytime soon.

Serena turned around again. She started shaking. For some reason she had a sense of dread. As much as she wanted to believe that this was another wolf cry, it was too well planned. This had to be what Georgina was leading her to all along.

Chuck noticed she was shaking too and he saw the look on her face. For some reason, he started to feel the first twinges of dread too… but that wasn't right. What was going on?

"Blair's phone is turned off," Serena finally said, somewhat stupefied.

"So…?" Why was Serena bringing up Blair to him? She knew he always cut her off and wrote off the entire subject. And… why was Serena trying to call Blair right now?

"Blair never turns her phone off," Serena said.

"There's a first time for everything…" Chuck said.

"The fairest of them all…" Serena whispered. She had been looking down but now she made eye contact with Chuck. "That's what Georgina said. If we figured out the riddle, we'd be one step closer to the fairest of them all."

Chuck was starting to understand. It'd been a year since he'd heard the nickname, and it'd been around five months since the nickname were true.

"Snow White…" Serena said.

"It's Blair. Oh my God, Chuck, she did something to Blair."

* * *

"Relax," Chuck said, standing up slowly, everything inside of him coming to a standstill. "Try calling Blair again, or call the house. It's just a joke, just like with me." At least it had better be a joke. And why the hell would Georgina think that he cared about Blair anyway?

Serena tried to dial again, but got the voice mail once more. She stomped her foot and tried to find some semblance of control as she found Dorota's number and called.

"Dorota? It's Serena," she said. "Sorry for calling so late, but… is Blair at home? Because her phone's turned off and I wanted to…" She waited as Dorota answered.

"Oh," Serena trailed off. "Okay."

Serena clicked off and looked at Chuck. "She's not there. Dorota's not sure where she's at. She said Blair left hours ago, claimed to be having dinner out with an old friend."

She could feel the panic starting to rise as she remembered her conversation with Blair earlier that evening. "That's why Blair said everything would be okay… she… she told me to go talk to Dan. She must have been planning to go see Georgie. Oh my God, oh my God, Georgina isn't kidding this time." She could feel herself starting to hyperventilate.

"What the hell could she possibly do to Blair anyway?" Chuck said, incredulous. "All this talk about presents and bath pipes and threats, but really, she's just a girl."

"You have no _idea_ what she's capable of!" Serena insisted.

She opened her phone and went straight to Georgina's number again.

"Serena! Four calls in one evening? It _is_ just like old times," Georgina purred into her phone.

"Where is she?" Serena asked with no preamble.

"So you figured out the riddle," Georgina said proudly. "Good for you!"

"Where is she?" Serena asked again, gritting her teeth.

Chuck started tapping his hand on the counter without even realizing he was doing it.

"You know, I always hated that little miss-pure-and-innocent. Was surprised to hear about her and Chuck really… of course, there is only one reason Chuckles would ever endanger his friendship with Nate over a girl. My, how the mighty have fallen," Georgina taunted before all amusement left her voice and she grew very serious.

"You always put that little bitch before me. She actually came to me tonight thinking she could just make your little problem go away. It was so cute really. Wish I had a friend like that."

"_Shut up!_" Serena shouted into the phone. "Tell me where she is right now!"

"Relax," Georgina said. "It's not like she has the SAT in the morning."

Serena had been pacing away from Chuck, but at the mention of the SAT she spun back around, her mouth dropped open as she gasped.

"You… you… you didn't!" she said, her panicked eyes connecting with Chuck who was all of a sudden a lot less calm as he realized something was very—_very_—wrong.

Serena clamped her eyes shut and sunk on the couch, "ohGodohGodohGod." Her words ran together. She heard a sob in her voice, hating herself for the tears, but she couldn't hold them back.

Chuck was finding it harder and harder to breathe. He didn't know what was happening, but all the different possible scenarios for Serena's reaction were racing through his mind and he got off his chair and went to Serena.

He tried to grab the phone away from her but Serena pulled away as Georgina began speaking again.

"You really want to know where she is?" Georgina asked giddily.

"Yes, yes, please Georgie, please," Serena gasped around the tears.

"How about another riddle?" Georgina said happily.

"No, no more riddles Georgie, please, just tell me where she is," Serena begged.

"S! You're begging! I love it!" Georgina exclaimed.

"Please, Georgie," Serena begged again. She didn't care that she was begging. She'd do anything.

"I'll text you," Georgina instructed. "Happy trails!"

Then she hung up again.

Serena flinched before putting an end to her side of the call. She held the phone out in front of her, waiting for the next clue in Georgina's scary scavenger hunt from hell.

"What did she say?" Chuck asked.

Serena was still shaking but she managed to give answer him. "She's sending another riddle. This one should tell us where she is."

Chuck nodded. Then he looked at Serena again. "What else did she say?"

Serena just pressed her lips firmly together and shook her head. She wouldn't tell him. She couldn't tell him.

She had suspected that something wasn't quite right when she woke up in Georgina's bed last Saturday. A part of her had a sneaking suspicion that she might have been slipped something… but she couldn't remember anything at all, so for all she knew she _could_ have changed her mind about drinking. But she really _had_ only been planning on drinking diet soda.

She had decided to put the suspicion out of her mind because she had too many other things to deal with that day. Chuck had just thought she'd gotten drunk again. He let her hang out at his place since he was in hiding until the SAT was over and she "sobered up" there.

Georgina had just confirmed that suspicion though. And Serena was trying not to think about what that could mean for Blair. Explaining everything to Chuck right now would make it all a little too real—she wouldn't be able to stop thinking about all the potential horrors that could have befallen Blair.

And why was it taking Georgina so long to send the fucking riddle? She shook her phone impatiently, which made no sense because it wasn't like a magic eight ball that would give her a different response after another shake.

"She said something," Chuck said tightly. He knew Serena was holding something back from him. "Tell me."

Serena just shook her head again, her eyes still glued to her phone. Everything came to a stand still as she waited.

Finally the phone beeped.

**A princess' home is the only place with doors that hide secrets. Each door marked by days past, mistakes that can never be forgotten no matter how much you want them to be. No boundaries. They just keep hanging from that ledge, falling into oblivion.**

"What's that mean?" Serena cried. She really only figured out the first clue because she happened to be staring into a damn mirror! How was she supposed to figure this out?

"She's trying to tell us a place, so what's the place in the riddle?" Chuck asked, his mind racing. "A princess' home. Where do princesses live?"

He looked up at Serena and they both answered at the same time, "a palace."

"She's here," Serena said. "But where?" The Palace Hotel was huge. It would be impossible to find her. "I could call the front desk and ask if any rooms are under Blair's name or Georgina's or…" She didn't want to think about what could be happening to Blair in a hotel room… where there was a bed.

"Wait," Chuck held up a finger. "Each door marked, that must be the room number. 'By days past, mistakes that can never be forgotten'… so the room number is… what?" He thought quickly. "A date."

Serena looked at him. He looked at her.

"So, this thing Georgina has on you, what day did it happen?"

"March…March 24th," Serena said softly, as if she could ever forget.

"Room 0324," Chuck said. He tossed the phone to Serena and got to his feet.

Serena followed after him, both of them making a mad dash for the stairs, running down the steps together.

When they arrived at the door, Chuck started banging on it.

"We need a key," Serena said, desperately unraveling.

"No boundaries, Serena," Chuck said, finally stopping as he remembered the end of the riddle. "She said no boundaries. We should be able to get in." He tried the door handle, but it didn't budge.

"Call Dexter or someone," Serena insisted frantically. "Get them to bring up a key!"

Chuck started looking around, "hanging from a ledge…" He looked at the top of the door, and saw the key resting off the edge around the frame.

He grabbed it and opened the door in record time.

Serena followed. She was scared to see what awaited them in the room, but that didn't stop her from racing forward with him.

He saw Blair first and went to the sofa chair she was sitting on, appearing to be asleep with her head resting on the arm.

Serena was just glad to see her completely dressed—still wearing her coat and shoes—even her purse was resting on her lap.

Chuck, who hadn't touched, spoken to, or tried to think about this girl since everything had blown up in his face, didn't hesitate. He picked up the purse and tossed it to the side before trying to wake her up. He pulled her to a sitting position. He tapped her face lightly with his fingers. She didn't respond to anything.

"What's wrong with her?" Chuck said. "What happened? What aren't you telling me?"

Serena wobbled as the relief coursing through her made her weak in the knees. She finally managed to join Chuck, kneeling on the floor next to him.

"She gave her something," Serena whispered. "She'll be fine. She just needs to sleep it off."

Chuck hated that his hand actually shook when he reached up to push Blair's hair out of her face where it had fallen forward.

"What does she have on you, Serena?" Chuck said in a deadly soft voice.

Serena didn't respond. She couldn't. She couldn't tell Chuck, no matter what. She couldn't involve him.

"Damn it, Serena," Chuck said, finally losing his cool. "What does she have on you!" He just needed to know what he was dealing with so he could figure out how to take care of Georgina but protect Serena at the same time.

Serena didn't answer his question, instead, "Let's get her on the bed. I'll stay here with her. She can't go home like this and my mom will have too many questions. Plus, nobody else can see her."

Chuck was going to get the truth out of Serena somehow, but he would wait for morning. Once Blair woke up, both of them could wear Serena down and make her tell them what was going on. Then they'd sort this out and make Georgina pay.

"I'm not leaving her," he said, glaring at Serena before turning back to Blair. He stood up and leaned down, putting one arm around her and one arm under her knees.

He carried her over to the bed and motioned for Serena to pull down the covers. She did so quickly and Chuck laid Blair down.

He started taking off her shoes but Serena stopped him.

"Don't," she said quickly.

"What?" he asked, slightly perturbed. "You don't honestly think… Shoes, coat, not very comfortable to sleep in." She couldn't possibly think he was trying to get a cheap thrill over this, could she? He was bad, but not _that_ bad.

"Just don't," she said. She knew he wouldn't understand, but she didn't care. When Blair woke up she wasn't going to know where she was or how she got there, but she was _not_ going to find one piece of clothing out of place. Serena would see to that herself.

Chuck finally shrugged and agreed. He pulled the covers up over Blair and sat on the edge of the bed, looking down at her. "You know I'm not going to just let this go," he whispered to Serena.

Serena didn't respond. She finally turned and walked away, reaching for her phone. She had one more phone call to make.

"Did you figure it out? Did you? Did you?" Georgina said excitedly.

"This was your last mistake Georgina," Serena whispered.

"Oh, don't be so dramatic, S!" Georgina said. "Not one hair out of place, I swear. It was just too good an opportunity to pass up. And really, it wasn't even the same thing I gave you. This just made her a little too sleepy a little too quickly. I got her to the room but couldn't even get her into the bed. She just passed out on the chair. Light weight!"

"Good bye Georgina," Serena said.

"Aw, no more reminiscing? Too bad. I was so pleased with the way things turned out! I managed to get to you by using Chuck _and_ Blair. Sometimes I amaze even myself!" Georgina exclaimed. "You know…"

Serena closed her phone. She was tired and didn't want to hear anything else Georgina had to say. She was going to get some rest, make sure Blair was okay, and figure out what to do in the morning.

She turned back to the bed. Chuck was still sitting there, gazing silently at Blair.

"She'll be okay," Serena whispered. She knew that the two of them had so many different issues that really needed to be sorted through. She knew that both of them had been avoiding those issues at all costs. But she also knew that Georgina was right. Chuck really did care about Blair and right now he was just as relieved as she was that Blair was safe and uninjured. Well, she was uninjured for the most part anyway.

Chuck just nodded.

She walked over to the other side of the bed, tossed her phone on the night table, kicked off her shoes and settled in next to Blair.

"Good night," she said, hoping he'd take the hint and leave.

"I'm staying," he said, looking up at Serena to emphasis his words.

Serena's breath caught in her throat at the look on his face. This look reminded her of the day he told her Bart had kicked him out. She never thought she'd ever see him so wounded. She actually felt guilty when he told her about Bart's decision.

The look on his face now was a cross between that look—as if he thought she was going to still try to kick him out of the room, determination—that he wasn't leaving no matter what she said, and… he looked… lost and worried.

She couldn't deny him if she tried.

She scooted toward the edge of her side of the bed and motioned for him to help with Blair.

They both managed to slide Blair to the center of the bed before Chuck laid down next to her.

Serena knew that waking up next to Chuck Bass was probably not the best thing for Blair, but it was better than waking up next to some random stranger.

As for the rest, Georgina had to be stopped. She just didn't know how.

* * *

_To be continued…_

**Note**: I realize that 'The Riddler' is the one who makes riddles on Batman, but Serena said 'The Joker' more for humor, and more b/c the movie is coming out this summer. Sort of a homage to Heath Ledger... And the only reason I didn't have Chuck correct her is because he doesn't seem like the type to care about Comic Books...or he might have just decided to hold back on correcting Serena just this once. Ok, the real truth is _I_ was the one that got confused, but shhh, don't tell anyone. ;)


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

* * *

"Serena…" the word came out low and confused and was almost a question.

She hadn't been able to sleep very well all night. She just held Blair against her and kept telling herself everything would be okay, but she had still drifted in and out of sleep. She noticed that Chuck had no problem sleeping, though he had rolled onto his stomach sometime in the night and put his arm around Blair.

She was sleeping so lightly that she heard the barely whispered name come from Blair's lips and woke immediately.

Blair was lying on her side, facing Serena. Her eyes were barely open but she'd awaken enough to make out Serena's form.

"Blair," Serena said. She reached out and touched Blair's hair, folding it back over her ear. "How are you feeling?"

Blair closed her eyes for a minute and tried to clear her throat. "You spent the night?" she asked, her voice barely rising above a whisper.

"Blair… what do you remember?" Serena asked.

Blair opened her eyes and stared at Serena without seeing her as she tried to think.

"Do you remember when we talked on the phone?" Serena asked.

"Yeah… and you went to see Dan," Blair whispered.

"And what did you do?" Serena asked. She figured this was the best way to ease Blair into it.

"I…" Blair closed her eyes and winced again. She had the beginning of the mother of all headaches in her head. "I went to see Georgina."

Blair froze and opened her eyes. "That's all I remember. I went to talk to Georgina…" She trailed off as her eyes left Serena's face and she saw the wall of the hotel room, not recognizing the painting.

"Where are we?" Blair asked, suddenly feeling as though something was very wrong. Then she felt the weight around her waist and looked down. "What's going on?" She saw the hand that was connected to the arm around her and she twisted over.

When she saw the face of the person sleeping next to her, she started panicking. She tried to push at his arm, but her movements were slow and lethargic. "Get off me!"

Chuck Bass was a lot of things—including a heavy sleeper. He didn't budge an inch at the sound and he didn't even wake up when she started trying to thrash.

"Blair, calm down," Serena insisted. "It's okay." She reached over and tried to make Blair stop.

"Serena!" Blair tried to holler but it came out more like a croak. "Why the hell am I in bed with you and _Chuck_?" She couldn't get his arm to move, so she tried to kick him.

That got his attention.

"_Sonofa_!" he moaned as a heel came in contact with his shin. He rolled away from her.

She sat up and scooted down off the bed. She started stumbling because her heel caught on the bed sheet and came down with her.

"Serena, what is going on?" Blair asked. She tried to kick the sheet away but it was firmly caught and she ended up flailing to keep her balance. "And why am I wearing heels?"

"That I'd like to know too," Chuck mumbled into his pillow, still holding his shin.

"Blair," Serena said, sighing as she sat up on her knees, reaching a hand out to her best friend. "You're fine, nothing happened, but… B, Georgina slipped you something last night."

Blair looked at Serena, opened mouth. Everything from the night before raced through her head. The last thing she remembered was entering Georgina's suite. Blair would have much rather met her somewhere else because she wasn't her favorite person… for a number of reasons… but Serena had sounded worried enough on the phone to get Blair to go and try to help. She never would have had anything to drink, but Georgina had started off by wanting to congratulate her on finally joining the rest of the world by losing her virginity.

It was something Georgina had always teased her about, something that she always used to put her down. And it always made her feel even worse because Georgina was Serena's other best friend, the one that was the complete opposite from Blair. Blair had always felt lacking because Georgina was the brunette Serena, through-and-through. She couldn't compete. The only thing Blair could do was be the one there for Serena when she was drunk out of her mind and needed someone to take care of her.

She'd begun to use her virginity as a shield at school, as a standard to uphold. It was the one thing that made her different from the others. Instead of allowing Georgina to get to her, she rose above all that.

Last night Georgina was ceremonially rubbing that in her face. And so, Blair had accepted the drink, thinking she'd need some fortification for the verbal argument ahead.

But Georgina had doctored it.

"Oh God," Blair finally said. She could feel herself starting to panic. She fought it back, trying to breathe.

"Blair," Serena said, scooting further down the bed on her knees. "_Nothing_ happened. It made you very sleepy. She brought you to this room, sat you on a chair, and called us. It was a game. A sick and twisted game, but _nothing_ happened. Okay?"

Blair started to calm down. She gave a small, stiff nod.

Chuck had turned over to watch her when Serena started explaining, not sure what to do to be helpful. Last night he hadn't once thought about what _could_ have happened if Georgina had decided to play her game a little differently—he wasn't one to worry about "what ifs" and what not anyway—but now that he thought about it… the bitch was _definitely_ going down… just as soon as he got the entire story from Serena.

"Look," Serena said, pointing down. "Shoes, your jacket, nothing is missing. Everything is just the way you put it on, if slightly rumpled. _Nothing_ happened. _No_ one touched you, Blair, I swear."

Blair finally started to breathe easier as she realized Serena was right. She nodded, looking down to find some equilibrium. Now that she knew nothing happened, she was very relieved. Her head still hurt though and her hair was definitely down and flung every which way. She kept pushing it back as it fell forward again and again.

Chuck now understood exactly why Serena had told him to stop making Blair more comfortable the night before. "How did you know…" he started to ask her.

Serena swung her head sharply at him. She started to shake her head, but it was too late. Blair had already snapped out of her stupor at the sound of his voice. That was the moment she remembered that Chuck Bass was in the room, in the bed… and he knew what Georgina had done to her.

"What is _he_ doing here?" Blair asked Serena while glaring at Chuck.

"Fulfilling a fantasy of mine," Chuck muttered with a smirk.

Serena threw a pillow at him, "Pig!" Even though she was ticked that he was making a perverted joke at a time like this, part of her was glad because it was diffusing the situation a little. That didn't mean she wasn't going to hit him with a pillow.

"I can't believe this," Blair muttered. She managed to get the sheet unattached from her heel and she stalked over to her purse which was lying on the floor.

Chuck snagged the pillow and put it under his head, propping himself up further. "Neither can I, which is why I believe Serena has some explaining to do," he said, making eye contact with her.

"What do you mean?" Blair asked, not looking up as she pilfered through her purse. She found her cell phone and realized it was turned off—probably courtesy of Georgina. She wanted to see if she'd gotten any calls from Dorota. She usually told her if she was staying out all night. She didn't want to worry her further.

"What's Georgina got on you?" Chuck asked Serena, eyes staring at her intently, conveying to her that there would be no maneuvering around the truth this time.

Serena opened her mouth but she couldn't find the words. She couldn't reveal this to them. It was too horrible. "I'll take care of it," she finally murmured as she got up and started putting her own shoes on. She was going to find a way to deal with Georgina.

"Because you've done such a stellar job thus far?" Chuck asked.

"Chuck," Serena sighed. "Just let me deal with this."

"No," Chuck said, eyes smoldering. "That was all well and good a week ago, but things have changed."

Serena didn't bother responding, just finished putting her shoes on with jerky movements. She stood up and adjusted her skirt before pushing her hair out of her face.

"Last night she threatened everyone in your life and she drugged Blair," Chuck stated the obvious. "She's a crazy psycho who seems to think nothing can touch her. I was all for letting you handle things until she came after me. That's personal Serena. Now talk."

Serena turned and made eye contact with him. She knew that look on his face. It wasn't a look to mess with. And she knew he was right. Georgina had taken things too far last night. She just didn't know if she could bear to tell them.

"What's she got on you? Time to come clean, sis. Who knows what she'll do next?" he said.

That got her attention. She realized that he was right. If Georgina could go that far with Blair, no one Serena cared about was safe. That's when she realized what she was going to have to do. She was going to have to turn herself in… or at least she was going to make Georgina think she was going to do it. If Georgina thought Serena would really do it, she'd have to back off to protect her own ass… right?

She opened her mouth to tell Chuck about her decision but was interrupted by a shriek.

Chuck and Serena's heads snapped toward Blair who had been quiet during their entire exchange.

Blair had been checking her voice mail to see if there were any missed messages from Dorota. She decided to text Dorota considering that her throat was still dry and her voice sounded horrible. She just explained that she was with Serena all night and forgot to call… and she accidentally turned her phone off.

Then she checked her inbox and found a text message from an unknown number that had pictures attached.

At the first picture, she saw herself… it had to be last night. She was clearly asleep, her head resting on a sofa chair arm. She felt a little sick but couldn't stop herself from going to the next picture.

In the second picture she was still sleeping, but her hand was resting up against her face, with her pointer finger held in front of her lips as if to say, "Shh."

So she advanced to the next picture. Georgina was holding Blair's head up, but kissing her cheek. It was clear that Georgie was holding the phone while snapping the picture.

The last picture had Georgina's face pressed right up next to Blair's sleeping one, grinning seductively at the camera phone.

Those were the only pictures, but there was one more text message. She opened it with dread. What she read made her shriek.

**Just imagine the possibilities… a photo is worth a thousand words… and I have plenty of photos. A photo a day keeps the scandal away. You might want to remind S, don't say a word.**

"What!" Serena exclaimed, racing to Blair. "What is it?" Blair looked pale as a ghost.

Blair snapped her phone shut. "N-nothing!"

Chuck came over and tried to get the phone from her, "Come on Waldorf, what's going on?"

"I still don't know why you're even here," Blair snapped at him, trying to turn the tables. "I-I…" She looked at Serena. "He said Georgina has something on you?" She asked. She'd been paying attention to their conversation, but barely. "What is he talking about?"

"It doesn't matter now," Serena said, momentarily flustered that the attention was directed back at her. "I… we… we did something horrible and she's trying to use that to get back at me. But I'm going to tell her that I'm turning myself in." She turned and started toward the door.

"No, don't!" Blair cried out, then she started coughing. Whatever the hell Georgina had given her really dried out her mouth.

Chuck still wanted to know why Blair had shrieked, but when she started coughing, he awkwardly patted her on the back.

Blair shrugged his hand away, giving him a look of disgust. She kept coughing though so she was forced to go to the bathroom for water.

"Here," Chuck said as he followed and handed a hotel provided cup to her.

She had already turned the water on. She grabbed the cup, filled it up, and sipped it. "You can leave now."

"You're welcome," he murmured sarcastically.

She rolled her eyes and took another drink. Fortunately the water was soothing her throat. She backed up and sat on the edge of bathtub, trying to catch her breath. She looked up and saw Serena at the door. Chuck was still standing by the sink.

Serena was warring with herself. She was scared and she was shaking, but she couldn't back down. Georgina needed to be stopped before she hurt anyone else that Serena cared about. Just watching Blair go from one emotion to another this morning had hurt Serena more than she thought possible: fear, anger, confusion, pain. And now Blair was sitting in a bathroom, still trying to recover from Georgina's attack.

Blair was too important. So were Eric and Dan and her mother… and, _blah_, even Chuck. Who knew what Georgina could do next?

"Serena, talk to us," Blair finally whispered. "What did you do?"

"I said it doesn't matter," Serena reiterated. "I _will_ take care of this."

"No, you won't," Blair said, looking down into her cup. "The rules have changed."

"How so?" Chuck asked, wondering if Blair's words had anything to do with whatever she saw on her cell phone.

Blair stared at the water for a minute more. She needed to know what she was dealing with. If whatever Georgina has on Serena could destroy her, Blair wasn't going to let that happen. But now she had to protect herself as well as Serena. She couldn't do that with out all the facts. But she couldn't tell Serena about Georgina's threat to _her_. It would give Serena one more thing to worry about and she was already clearly upset and scared.

"She came after me," Blair said, clearing her throat. She looked up at Serena. "And she's obviously coming after you. That made this my business."

"I don't want you involved anymore than you already are," Serena insisted, tears gathering in her eyes. She looked at Chuck. "Both of you."

"A little late for that," Chuck said.

"Serena, just tell us," Blair said, her voice a mix between comfort and insistence. "You were there for me when no one else was; I'm here for you now. Whatever happened, you need to tell me. I can't help you if you don't tell me."

"B," Serena said, the tears starting to trail down slowly. She shook her head and sank down to the floor, her back against the wall. "You leaving for France and what happened with me and Georgina are not the same thing. I don't want you to be a part of this."

"Look around, Serena," Blair said softly, encouraging. "I already am."

Serena tilted her head to make eye contact with Blair. Then she looked up at Chuck.

Chuck was looking a little confused as he tried to follow the conversation, he didn't like not knowing what their trivial commentary meant. Something about France? But the thought left his head when he saw Serena looking up at him. She seemed to be considering her options, trying to decide whether to tell them or not.

He nodded too, giving her encouragement. His interest was extremely piqued.

And just like that, she fell back against the wall. She opened her mouth slowly and began to speak.

"The night of the Shepherd wedding… I had plans to meet with Georgina. So I went after… after…" Serena trailed off. More tears slipped down her cheeks as she looked at Blair.

Blair pressed her lips together at the reminder of Serena and Nate's betrayal, but she gave a small nod, letting Serena know she understood and she should continue.

Serena stared off into space after that, finally giving in to the memories she tried to push away for so long… and the words tumbled out.

"I met up with Georgina and our friend Pete, and they were passing around lines, but I was too upset about what just happened… I couldn't believe I did that to you, B… I just felt sick and was totally out of it."

"Pete was all over me and I just wasn't in the mood. I was upset and feeling sick and… I finally got him to stop by telling him he should have another line. He agreed, and I passed the mirror to him and…" Serena curled her head down, forward, not wanting to relieve this part.

Neither Chuck nor Blair interrupted or rushed her. They just let her get it out in her own time.

"He took it and… he started having some kind of seizure or whatever," Serena closed her eyes tight. "I screamed for Georgina… I don't know where she was… she was in another room. I… I picked up the hotel room phone and started calling 911, but then Georgie showed up and made me hang up. She said that we would get in so much trouble because there were drugs everywhere. She told me to get everything that was mine, and we both did… but I couldn't just _not_ do anything, so I found his cell phone and called."

Serena started heaving with her sobs. Blair went to her, sliding across the floor and putting her arm around her. Serena clung to her and somehow managed to get the rest of the words out.

"Georgina said we had to split up in case the cops were looking for us," Serena was shaking all over, remembering her fear from that night. "But I waited across the street. I saw the paramedics arrive and…and…I wanted them to save him, but he was… dead. I… I took a train and got a room and somehow convinced my mom that boarding school was a good idea."

"So that's why you left without saying goodbye," Blair murmured into her hair, trying to get her mind around everything Serena had just said.

Chuck was sitting quietly. He hadn't been expecting this. Everything was basically fun and games until someone got hurt—as their little pool excursion at the beginning of the year showed.

"And she's holding it over my head. She wanted me to be friends with her again, but I told her that I wasn't interested… I told her to leave me alone. I thought she understood I had changed at first, but then the night before the SATs…" Serena trailed off before looking at Chuck. "She slipped something into my Diet Coke. I didn't even know until she said something on the phone about Blair. I couldn't understand why I had decided to drink anything. I didn't know how I got there…I accepted what she said to me."

Chuck finally understood how Serena knew to take care of Blair last night.

"So… what are you going to do?" Blair finally asked, still reeling from the news, but she was sorting things out in her head.

"I'm going to her and telling her that if she doesn't leave me or Dan or my friends and family alone, I'll turn myself in," Serena said softly. "Chuck's right, I don't know what she'll do next. She's a psycho, she could do anything. I don't know how she got to be the way she is, but after what she did to you, I just… I can't take anymore chances."

* * *

_To be continued..._


	6. Chapter 6

**REMINDER: **This story takes place after Desperately Seeking Serena (SAT eppy!). Hence, no video has been delivered to Serena. The sex tape does not exist thus far in the world I'm writing in. Doesn't mean I couldn't add one, but for now, it's not there.

* * *

**Chapter Six**

* * *

Blair was having quite an attack of conscious.

On the one hand, Georgina had the power to let loose with humiliating pictures of her and make her current tenuous grasp on her reputation that much worse. So she didn't really want Serena to make this threat against Georgina in case G decided to release the pictures as a way to get back at Serena by hurting Blair further.

She also didn't want Serena to go through with her threat because she didn't want Serena to get in trouble. She couldn't lose her best friend again. She loved her too much. What if coming forward made it impossible for Serena to stay? But… the entire story seemed so weird. Maybe if it had happened last week instead of last year it would seem scarier? Right now though, it seemed like it wasn't Serena's fault at all.

On the _other_ hand, Serena was going through something very traumatic. Blair didn't even want to think about what she would have done around a seizure victim. It was bad enough dealing with Serena whenever she was hopelessly intoxicated, but a dead or dying person? Of course, Blair would never have been _in_ that situation. She would have been able to call for an ambulance. She wouldn't have been near cocaine. She wouldn't have been making out with some random guy, and she definitely wouldn't have been hanging out with Georgina Sparks.

Blair took a deep breath and decided that she couldn't make this about herself. This was about Serena. Serena needed peace. If it took Blair's reputation getting destroyed even more to do it… Blair would have to deal with it. She'd already been tossed into the pits of hell, why not stay an extra day or two—some things were just more important. It was Blair's own fault that Georgina got her anyway. She should have seen it coming.

She hadn't.

"If that's what you want to do, do it," Blair finally said.

Serena looked at Blair, confused. "That's all? You aren't going to say anything else?"

Blair shook her head. "What happened wasn't your fault, Serena. I know you're scared and ashamed, but it _wasn't_ your fault. And you know that I'm not going to judge you." She gave Serena a hesitant smile.

Serena breathed a sigh of relief.

"And here I thought it was something good," Chuck said, giving his usual smirk but it was used more as a means to relax Serena than to tick her off. "Georgina's got nothing. I don't know why she's acting all psycho. It seems to me that you have more against her than she does you. In the past week she's drugged both of you. I'd say it's her turn to be scared. Threaten _her_. Tell her that you'll come forward with information about that guy last year, _and_ what she did _this_ year. She'll be gone before you know it."

Blair tried not to wince. Last night she had inadvertently given Georgina something to work with. If she threatened Serena with those pictures… Blair didn't even know what was in them… but she _had_ been completely dressed this morning. There was no way they were as horrible as G seemed to be making them out to be.

"He's right," she finally said, giving Chuck a disgusted look.

He just smirked at her.

"Go confront her. You can do this. And don't back down… no matter what she says," Blair added the last part hoping Serena remembered her words if Georgina went that route. Who was she kidding? Georgina was definitely going to use the pictures. Blair just had to make sure Serena didn't back down.

Serena nodded. Then she cringed. "What about Dan? She's been pretending to be someone else. She's become friends with Dan and… even if you're right and this isn't as serious as I think it is, she can still tell him… and he's going to be so mad if he knows I knew Georgina was lying to him about who she is and I didn't tell him!" Serena spoke so quickly, Chuck and Blair could barely keep up.

"Tell him yourself," Blair said. "Don't give Georgina the chance to tell him and distort the facts. Be truthful with him. It's Dan Humphrey. Yes, he's judgmental, but he adores you. He loves you, Serena. He won't just walk away from you. If he really loves you, he can forgive you for just about _anything_."

Serena had been listening to Blair but she was looking straight ahead again which is the only reason that she saw the look on Chuck's face as he listened to Blair. He seemed to be hanging on to her every word, as if he wasn't just hearing but he was learning something too.

His eyes flickered over to meet Serena's and just like that the pensive expression on his face left and went back to his normal smirk.

"Okay…" Serena murmured, still looking at Chuck. She shook her head as if to clear it and turned to Blair. "I'll go talk to her now."

Blair helped Serena to her feet. They made their way out of the bathroom with Chuck following close behind.

"I left my bag in your room," Serena murmured to Chuck as she tried to situate herself, remembering that she'd forgotten everything in her mad dash to find Blair.

"It'll be there when you're done," Blair said, ignoring the fact that Serena was speaking to Chuck. She just didn't want to hear his voice or acknowledge that he was in the room.

She turned Serena away from Chuck and walked/pushed/escorted her toward the door.

"Everything will be fine, just get the bag afterwards," Blair said briskly. "And call me as soon as you know anything."

"What? Where are you going?" Serena asked when she realized she would need Blair close after her confrontation with Georgina.

"Home," Blair said simply.

"Don't go," Serena said softly.

Blair rolled her eyes and looked heavenward.

"Fine. I'll be with nimrod over here," Blair looked in disgust at Chuck, finally acknowledging his presence.

"Yeah, we'll be waiting in my suite. Not a problem," he shrugged before a slow smirk made its way across his face, "the… _rod_… is always at the ready," he drawled.

"_Don't_ talk to me," Blair snapped. Leave it to Chuck Bass to make a penis metaphor in the middle of something serious. She looked back at Serena.

"You'll be fine," she encouraged. "Just _don't_ back down. _No. matter. what_."

* * *

In retrospect, Blair's final words were ringing quite ominous. Of course Serena didn't realize that until midway through her confrontation with Georgina.

"So, let me get this straight," Georgina said, tilting her head to the side and pursing her lips in confusion. "You want me to back off and leave you and all your little friends alone, or you're going to _tell_ on me?"

Georgina started laughing hysterically.

"Serena, please. We both know you haven't the courage. Besides," her face became serious again, "_you_ were the one who gave him that line. I was in the other room, remember?"

Serena could feel herself losing ground. She struggled to regain her footing.

"But you _were_ there," Serena said firmly. "You probably even brought the coke! And, let's not forget about what you've done to me and Blair! Do you really think you'll get away with that?"

Georgina had a sick twisted smirk on her face.

"But Serena, I already have…"

"No, you haven't!" Serena snapped. "You can't just go around drugging people whenever you feel like it and expect to get away with it! And threatening my friends and family? You're like a stalker or something. There are laws against what you're doing!"

Georgina's face became thoughtful and she started strolling gingerly around her room. She paused at an end table and retrieved her cell phone.

She walked back over to Serena while she opened the phone and flipped to her destination without even looking at the device, just keeping eye contact with Serena the entire time.

Serena didn't like that glint in Georgina's eye.

"Well, besides the fact that there is no definitive way to actually prove that either of you were actually drugged… And the stalker thing… well, it'll be very hard to prove that based on a lovely little riddle text message. Unless you actually _recorded_ our conversations?" Georgina laughed.

"Though I think not… but I have a feeling that at least one of the pictures I'm about to show you will change your tune…."

* * *

Blair hadn't said a word to Chuck since they entered his suite. She hadn't even looked at him again. She couldn't and wouldn't. If he hadn't opened his big fat mouth, well twiddled his fingers, she wouldn't be in the position she had found herself in for the past few months.

Chuck had remained blissfully silent as well. It was obvious she didn't want to be in the room, or anywhere near him for that matter, but she would do anything for Serena.

He'd had a lot of time to reflect on things in the past couple of months and he honestly was ready to bury the hatchet. It wasn't like him to hold a grudge anyway. If he was wronged, he got even. Then he moved on, not wasting a minute of time living in the past. As far as he was concerned, he'd managed to hurt her just as much—just not in the same way—as she had hurt him. So why not let bygones be bygones and move past this?

Easier said than done.

Especially when _she_ wasn't going to move past it. Probably because nobody else was letting her forget about it. Well, what did he expect? This was the reason public humiliation was usually so satisfying—its long term effect.

He knew she was a bit of a drama queen, but couldn't she at least _talk_ to him? He'd spent all night with her in his arms and he strangely wanted to do it again. _Fat chance of that happening._

"You can at least sit down," he muttered while leaning on the counter. He wasn't drinking this early, but he hadn't been able to figure out what to do with him self—which he also found mildly disconcerting—so he spent the time wiping down the bar from Serena's dropped shot the night before.

She didn't even bother acknowledging that he'd spoken. And she wasn't going to sit down. She was going to stand right where she was. She was near the door. She was not entering the room any further. It was bringing back too many memories of things she _definitely_ didn't want to think about.

And sitting on _that_ particular couch, or _that_ particular bar stool, was asking too much.

So, she just stood with her arms crossed facing the wall waiting for Serena to come back so she could get the hell out of this place.

Chuck shrugged. If she didn't want to sit, let her stand. What did he care?

He finished with the counter and leaned against it, as silent as Blair. He finally decided to try to broach more of a conversation when there was a knock at the door.

Blair hurried over and opened it quickly.

Serena came in but she didn't look at either of them. She just went straight to the couch to pick up her purse.

"Well?" Chuck said.

"I, uh, just need my bag," Serena muttered. She clasped it in her hand and started toward the door again, walking past Blair just as quickly as she had when she arrived. She paused at the door with her hand on the door frame, looking out into the hall. "Well? Are you coming, Blair?"

"Wait just a minute," Chuck said, standing straight. "What'd she say? And what's with you?"

"Blair?" Serena said, completely ignoring Chuck's words.

"Serena? Is everything okay?" Blair asked worriedly. "You threatened her right? She's going to back off?" She was ever hopeful about it, but something told her all was not right.

"Blair, just follow me," Serena said listlessly.

"So, she's not backing down?" Chuck guessed. "You're not really going to turn yourself in, are you? I mean, yeah, it was a threat, but you don't really have to do it. We'll figure something else out."

Serena stopped trying to put up a front at his words, especially since it was obvious Blair wasn't following her as quickly as she wanted her to. So, she let go of the door and let it shut before resting her forehead against the wood.

"No, I'm not turning myself in," Serena whispered.

While Blair was relieved, she was also worried. What was Serena not saying?

"Then what's with the speedy entrance-exit?" Chuck said. "You should be celebrating. I didn't think she'd give in so easily, or so quickly, but I stopped trying to figure out that bitch a long time ago."

Serena just shook her head, still resting it on the wall.

"Serena…" Blair started, the dread starting to build. "I said 'no matter what.' You didn't listen to me, did you."

It was a statement, not a question. She knew what happened. She was a fool for thinking that Serena would do as Blair said. It was part of this whole living in denial "thing" that Serena kept harping on her about. She was a fool for not warning Serena about Georgina's latest tactic… but she didn't want to say anything in front of Chuck. Even after Georgina showed Serena the pictures, Serena should have remembered Blair's words and understood that Blair was willing to suffer horrendously, once more, so that Serena could find some peace.

"Well, just go back and tell her it doesn't matter!" Blair commanded.

Chuck looked from Blair to Serena, feeling as though he was missing something huge.

"It's never going to be over," Serena whispered. "I'm damned if I _don't_…" she trailed off before finally turning and meeting Blair's gaze. "… And _you're_ damned if I do."

Blair winced. "I told you to—"

"Why didn't you tell me?" Serena asked, eyes luminous.

"It doesn't matter," Blair said, shaking her head. "This isn't about me, this is about you."

"Tell you what?" Chuck asked Serena, though it didn't really matter because both of them seemed to have tuned him out of their little conversation.

"You don't understand…" Serena said, a tear trailing down her cheek.

Blair shook her head. "I told you, it doesn't matter. It was my fault this happened. I can deal with it, okay? Okay?" Blair insisted. This was too hard. She wasn't one to be selfless, but… Serena was her best friend. She'd do anything for her. Besides, even if Georgina released the pictures, Serena would be there for her… if she's not in jail, of course. But Blair didn't see it going that far.

"No, it's not okay," Serena said, fumbling for her phone. "It's not okay, it's _NOT OKAY!"_ She found what she was looking for. "Does _this_ look _okay_ to you?"

Serena shoved the phone into Blair's face.

Blair blanched.

"What the—" Chuck said as he started across the room to see whatever the hell Serena was showing Blair.

Before he got close enough, Serena snapped the phone shut.

Chuck glowered at Serena from his place next to Blair. "Sis, you're really starting to piss me off." When Serena still ignored him, he tried to take the phone away from her but she snatched it back.

"Somebody start talking," Chuck said. "Think I'm in this for my health? The crazy bitch is going down. Whatever the problem is, we'll take care of—"

He broke off when he heard a sob.

He turned his head to look at Blair. And all he could do was keep watching in shock.

She was trying not to cry. She was really trying hard. But the act of holding it in was making short sobs burst out, racking her body. Once, twice, three times. She was no longer paying attention to anything or anyone around her. All she could see was that picture, this one worse than anything she could possibly have imagined.

She started shaking her head, trying to gulp back the tears.

Serena saw her start to fall apart and went straight for her, putting her arms around her best friend. Blair half reached out too, but then she started pulling away, still shaking her head.

"I…" Blair whimpered, "I… " She couldn't finish the sentence. In truth, she didn't even know what she was trying to say.

She yanked away from Serena and pushed past her to the door. She was out of the room before Chuck and Serena could even blink.

Chuck stood frozen, staring at the door, unable to believe that Blair Waldorf had just been reduced to tears. And he didn't like it. Not one bit.

"Serena," Chuck said, talking to her even though he was still staring at the door. "I want answers. Now."

Serena wasn't even listening to him. She was already on her way after Blair. She grabbed the door handle and opened it. She turned back to him as an afterthought.

"We need something on Georgina. Something big. _Find_ it. _Now_," she said, her eyes gloomy as she nodded darkly, making sure he understood what he was supposed to do.

With that, she was gone. Chuck had half a mind to go after them, but her words gave him pause.

The only reason that they would need something on Georgina would be if _she_ had something on one of them.

And judging by Blair's reaction, Georgina had something on her. Something big. Something horrible.

And as much as he wanted to go after them and ring their necks until they told him what that "something" was, he didn't think now was a good time.

In the meanwhile, he was going to do exactly what Serena told him to do. He was going to get the bitch. His mind was already racing with ideas. Looked like he was going to be doing some reconnaissance work too.

It was going to be a long day.

* * *

_To be continued…_


	7. Chapter 7

**REMINDER: **This story takes place after Desperately Seeking Serena (SAT eppy!). Hence, no video has been delivered to Serena. The sex tape does not exist thus far in the world I'm writing in. Doesn't mean I couldn't add one, but for now, it's not there.

* * *

**Chapter Seven**

* * *

Serena raced after Blair, hoping that Chuck would stay in his suite. There was no way Blair could handle what Georgina had just revealed with Chuck in her presence.

"Blair, stop!" Serena called. She saw Blair heading for the stairs instead of the elevator. "He's not following us. Just stop! Please, B!"

Blair came to the door to the stairway and hesitated.

Serena breathed a sigh of relief and sped up faster to meet her.

"Let's go to my suite, okay?" Serena said as she warily approached the tearful Blair.

Blair gasped and looked down, not wanting to look at her.

Serena put an arm around her shoulders and gently pulled her against her side.

"Follow me, B," Serena whispered. "You can't go home like this."

Blair took a deep breath, and nodded. She still had tears coming down and she knew she had to regain control of herself somehow. It was just so hard at the moment.

Serena turned and guided Blair to the elevator.

They were silent all the way to the suite. Serena just kept her arm around Blair, plagued by her horror and thoughts of Georgina's latest revenge.

They finally arrived at Serena's room, Serena guiding Blair the entire way since she hadn't been to the new suite yet. Blair hadn't wanted to be anywhere near Chuck, and though he had moved out a few weeks ago, Blair hadn't had the opportunity since then.

Blair went right for Serena's bed and collapsed face forward, grabbing a pillow and curling into a ball.

"B…" Serena whispered after shutting her door. She walked over and climbed up next to Blair, sitting on her knees. "What did you do?"

Blair shook her head and finally whimpered, "I thought she just took pictures last night, I figured since everything was in place… my clothes, my coat, my shoes… that I'd be fine, maybe I'd have to deal with some stupid sleepover prank or something… I never thought…" She couldn't continue as another sob racked her body and she burrowed her head into the pillow again.

"B," Serena started softly, "this wasn't taken last night. That's—"

"I know!" Blair interrupted. "I don't know how she got that!"

"B… did you…?" Serena couldn't bring herself to ask the question.

"No!" Blair denied quickly, raising her head. "Of course not!"

"That's not what this looks like…" Serena had to say. She pulled out her phone and flipped to the picture. "She showed me another one from last night too, she did take some… but it didn't make sense until she gave me the one I showed you."

"This was the one from last night," she continued, holding the phone out.

Blair tried everything she could not to break down again at the sight.

"I didn't do it, Serena!" Blair exclaimed, horrified.

"Okay, okay," Serena soothed. "I believe you, but…" No one else was going to believe that she hadn't done it. That was the problem.

"I know, I know," Blair cried. "Oh my God! She must have been following me last week. I was walking and these _people_ were all grouped together and just shouting things and I was just trying to get through. One of them got in my face and we started arguing and… Serena, that picture is _not_ what it looks like! I swear!"

"I… B… I can't let this get out," Serena said. "I can't do anything against her. You just started rebuilding… and this would be irreparable. I just… I don't know what to do." She wanted to cry along with Blair at this point. She wanted to rage and throw things and… most of all… she wanted to know if Blair was really telling her the truth.

"I don't know what to tell you to do here…" Blair said as guilt and sorrow flooded her body. She wanted to help Serena take down Georgina, but what Georgina had on her… Everything warred inside her head and she plopped her head against the pillow again.

"I told Chuck—" Serena started.

Blair jumped up, panic making her body tense. "You told him!" She screamed the words in the most horrified disbelief.

"No!" Serena was quick to deny, but Blair's reaction was making her very suspicious. "I told Chuck to find something on her. He doesn't know… and what does it matter if he knows anyway… especially since it's not what it looks like?" She couldn't help but ask. She didn't think Blair would have the reaction she'd had if it really was nothing.

"S, please," Blair pleaded, wide eyes gleaming with tears as she beseeched her best friend. "He can't know."

"Okay," Serena whispered. "B… are you sure there isn't more to this?"

"Serena, it was a stupid argument," Blair snapped. "Please, just believe me that I didn't do _that_, okay?"

Serena pressed her lips together.

She'd let it go for now, but she knew she was right. Blair was lying to her or not telling her the full truth. "I still don't know what to do about Georgina. She's going to… what about Dan?" She could feel her earlier anxiety coming back.

Blair was silent and Serena was sure she wasn't going to respond, but then she did.

"Tell him the truth," she said.

"But…" Serena started to argue.

"Just tell him to keep up the farce to buy us some time," Blair explained. "She'll think she's getting to you through him but he'll be able to navigate things and keep everyone else safe until Chuck can find something."

Serena really didn't want to tell Dan about Pete, but in essence, she would have done so if Georgina didn't have something on Blair, so…

"I don't think he's going to agree to this," she said finally. "He's not going to want to have anything to do with her. He's not going to understand why he'll have to keep pretending."

"He'll do it," Blair affirmed, though she wasn't really that certain. "He won't want anyone else to get hurt."

"I don't know…" Serena said. She really didn't think he'd do it, especially if no one would get hurt if she just revealed the truth to all. She wouldn't be able to tell Dan _why_ she couldn't turn Georgina in… or could she?

"Well, that's just a risk we're going to have to take," Blair finished.

* * *

"Hi…"

"Well, hello stranger," Dan said, staring at his gorgeous girlfriend whom he hadn't seen for a few days and, though he was upset about the state of their relationship right now, he was happy to see her. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I… I have to tell you something," Serena said softly. "Can I come in?" She felt a little awkward still standing in the loft doorway.

"Okay," Dan said curtly before opening the door a little wider. He watched her walk by, breathing in the familiar smell of her perfume. There was something so reassuring and… just _right_ about being around her. As if the world was perfect and safe and just… well, _right_… when she was with him.

With that thought, he decided that he was going to work even harder to get to the bottom of what was bothering her… and he prayed that she didn't continue to shut him out.

She went straight for his room and he followed. He shut the door and turned to find Serena pacing back and forth like the fury of hell was upon her.

"I don't want you to hate me," Serena finally stopped and said, wrapping her arms around her stomach and slumping to sit on the edge of the bed.

Dan saw how upset she was and knew that it was very possible that she was going to finally tell him what was bothering her. He went straight to her and knelt in front of her.

"Hey, hey, look at me," he whispered. When she met his gaze, he gave her a smile that showed how he really felt about her. "I love you. You could never make me hate you. It's okay. Just trust me."

Serena gazed into his eyes and saw herself how he always saw her. This was so difficult, but she knew she had to tell him. She also knew that her heart was going to break into a million pieces if she finally told him this… and that look went away.

So she took a deep breath, and then the story just spilled out. It was oddly easier to tell the second time around.

She talked about meeting her _friend_, Georgina, and being drunk, not wanting to really do anything with Pete. She told him about offering Pete that line of coke, and the convulsions that followed. She told him about trying to call for help before she used Pete's phone to do it, about watching for the medics to arrive, and then revealing that he was dead. And then she was done.

And the silence in the room became deafening.

Serena couldn't look at Dan. She didn't want to see the light in his eyes dim. She didn't want to see the disgust that was surely on his face. But she also couldn't live with the silence that was screaming at her.

"Please… say something," Serena begged. She realized that tears had started coming down her cheeks. She hastened to explain further.

"I know; I know there's no excuse for what I did. I ran… and he _died…_" she gasped.

"And you've been beating yourself up about it ever since," Dan finished for her.

Serena nodded, and hiccupped on a sob.

"Come here," Dan whispered, putting an arm out for her to slide closer to him.

Serena shook her head. He wanted her to come to him? But that didn't make any sense. She was disgusting. Why wasn't he turning her away?

"Come _here_," Dan insisted, settling his arm around her shoulders with a tug.

She leaned into him and let him hold her, unable to believe that he wasn't pushing her away.

"Thank you."

Serena hesitated, pulling back a little. "What?" Dan just thanked her… for what?

"Thank you for trusting me," Dan whispered. He didn't smile because he knew how serious the situation was, but he let her know with his eyes that he wasn't going to turn her away.

"So you don't—," Serena began to ask, _think I'm disgusting, horrible, and no longer love me?_

"No, I don't hate you," Dan interrupted gently.

Serena met his eyes and saw that nothing had changed. He still loved her and he was still looking at her the way he always had. She couldn't believe it. She had been so afraid that he would turn away from her… but it really was all about trust. She just needed to trust him with her secrets to see that nothing she did would make him turn away from her.

She sank into his arms again, content for the moment, though she was still tearful.

Dan held her, thinking about everything she'd just revealed. He knew she had a wild past, he'd seen firsthand how she behaved… and he'd still had this huge crush on her for years before he even spoke to her. He wasn't going to hold her past against her ever again; he was glad he'd finally had the opportunity to prove that to her. Now maybe he wouldn't have to go through what he'd been through these past few weeks ever again.

Except… he was still confused.

"So… why now?" he asked, realizing that there had to be more to this story. "Why are you bringing this up a year later? What does this have to do with why you missed the SATs?"

Serena pulled away and wiped her eyes. She knew this conversation was far from over and she had to get through the rest. It would be easier now that she'd gotten through the hardest part. "There's more," she whispered.

Dan nodded slowly, encouraging her to continue.

Serena took a deep breath. "Georgina came back a few weeks ago, wanting to put the past in the past and be friends again… except she didn't get that I'd changed."

Serena winced. "I lied to you. I had Chuck lie to you."

"I'm sure Chuck didn't mind," Dan said, in a misguided attempt to lighten the mood. He already knew Serena had lied to him, at least now she was admitting it. But he understood _why _she'd done it.

"I was scared and worried about everything when she came back and so when she said she wanted to meet and catch up, I agreed," Serena said. "I went with her and we had a few drinks and before I knew it, it was just like old times. Then she got a call from a dealer and it was like a wake up call. I didn't want to be involved with that _ever_ again. I'd already been down that road. So I left her and called Chuck and had him call you because I was drunk and had totally lost track of time and was supposed to meet you… and then I faked food poisoning because I just didn't want to tell you about her."

"I'm sorry," she finished.

Dan nodded. He now knew the truth behind that crazy day when he first realized she'd lied to him… but what about later?

"And the SATs?" he asked. "You looked pretty out of it when I saw you that day… it looked like you'd had a rough night…" He didn't want to say something like, '_Did you give in to temptation again?_' He figured that would be a little in poor taste.

"I was so stupid," Serena sighed. "She called me and convinced me she wanted to turn over a new leaf… like me changing my life around was inspiring or something. She said she was leaving town again the next day, so she wanted us to get together one more time and that we wouldn't drink or anything. So I agreed."

"What happened?" he asked.

"I don't know," Serena looked at him with tears in her eyes. "One minute we were drinking diet soda and the next… I woke up the next morning and was late for the test. I didn't remember anything, so I didn't know what _really_ happened until last night, which was that she slipped something in my drink when I wasn't looking."

"My God," Dan said, completely shocked. "And you were friends with this person?"

Serena sighed. "Not anymore? If that means anything."

"Are you okay?" he asked quickly. "She didn't do anything else to you, did she?"

"Well, not me," she said. "But I have a problem and I need your help."

"Okay?" he asked, confused about how he could possibly help.

"I told Georgina that I didn't want to have anything to do with her ever again—this was after the test, before I knew she drugged me," Serena said disjointedly, sounding more and more like Dan as she explained. "And she got really upset and went… mad or something. She's decided to come after every person I care about."

Dan's eyes widened. This girl really sounded like a regular nut job.

"Last night she threatened Eric and Chuck, but the worst part was what she did to Blair," her voice caught. "She drugged Blair." Her eyes met his, wide and luminous.

"Is she okay?" he asked, concerned. And, he hated to admit it, he was more than a little scared… well, not scared… but _concerned_. If someone could get one over on Blair Waldorf and that someone wasn't named Chuck Bass… then this Georgina person had to be quite scary.

"She sent us, me and Chuck, on this wild chase with crazy riddles to find Blair," Serena went on, choosing to ignore Dan's question about Blair. She wasn't sure if Blair _would_ be okay, but she definitely wasn't okay right now. "She'd left Blair in a room at the Palace and we found her. She was passed out. We stayed there with her all night and in the morning I decided that I couldn't let Georgina keep hurting everyone so I went to tell her that she needed to stop or I was going to the police about last year."

"So… what happened…?" Dan asked when Serena went silent. "Did she back down?"

"No…" Serena whispered. "But she had something else… something that I can't…" _tell you about_ "ignore. I can't go to the police right now."

"Why not? Yes, you can," Dan said quickly. "It's the right thing to do." He knew she probably already knew that, plus, he was fairly certain it wouldn't matter even if she _did_ turn herself in. She was under aged, she _had_ called 911, and she hadn't forced the guy to snort the line.

"I can't… and I need you to do something," Serena looked at him with pleading eyes.

"Yes?" Dan asked, a little wary.

"You have a new friend, Sarah?" she asked softly.

"Uh, why?" Dan asked, completely confused as to this new round of questioning.

"That's Georgina," Serena whispered. "She already got to you."

"_What_?" Dan exclaimed, jumping off the bed in complete shock.

"I'm sorry, I don't know what her game plan is, but I _need_ you to keep up the pretense," Serena said.

"Wait, how do you even know it's her?" Dan's mind raced. He remembered that Sarah had a dog named Georgie… that couldn't be a coincidence.

"Nate," Serena said simply. "He and Vanessa met up with you and her last night?" She didn't bother to ask if Georgina had tried anything with Dan. She trusted him… and it wasn't his fault that she hadn't told him the entire story before now.

Dan remembered that Nate had called Sarah "Georgie" but that had been quickly fixed. No wonder, Nate had to have recognized her immediately. "So, Nate doesn't know about what happened last year? Who does?"

"No, he doesn't," Serena said, though that oversight might need to be fixed soon, "As of last night, Chuck and Blair, and now you."

"So… wait, I don't understand," Dan shook his head. "Why do I have to keep pretending to be her friend? This is crazy."

"I know, but please do this for me," Serena begged.

"Why can't you just settle this?" Dan asked, more confused than ever. "Just talk to the guy's family or something, I mean, _he_ took the drugs. You _did_ call 911. There was nothing more you _could_ do."

"Please, Dan," Serena begged again.

Dan looked into her eyes and saw the truth.

"You're still not telling me everything, are you?" he asked, feeling hurt.

"Dan…" Serena trailed off.

"I don't get you," Dan said. "You've told me all this and now want me to just pretend to not know who she is? It's like some stupid movie plot—Single White Female, or whatever. This is crazy! You were _right_, Serena. Just come clean and tell the police about the threats too. Get a restraining order or something. She _clearly_ needs help."

"I can't," Serena said, though she was frowning slightly because Dan had just said basically the same thing as Chuck.

"I'm not going to do this," Dan finally said.

"Please, Dan!" Serena said, standing up, panicking. "She said she's going to come after everyone I care about! This will give us time to find something on her, please!"

"Find something on her?" Dan faltered. "I thought you already _had_ something on her. Why do you need something else?"

Serena looked away.

"What are you afraid of? What aren't you telling me?" Dan asked softly.

"It's… it's not my secret to tell…" Serena whispered.

"That's cryptic," Dan said sarcastically. Then he started to think. "So, you need something on Georgina, probably because she has something on one of you… but if you were going to turn yourself in already, and Chuck could never be ashamed of anything… this is about Blair isn't it?"

Serena didn't answer.

"I'm so sick of all this Upper East Side reputation stuff," Dan said, disgusted. "She's one of the most selfish people I've ever met. You're hurting because of this, and she wants you to keep silent because of something silly like her reputation? Forget about it. I am _not_ going to keep pretending with Georgina for _Blair_."

"She didn't want me to give in to Georgina…" she denied.

Serena shifted. She really shouldn't show him, but maybe she should… She thought that Blair was lying about the truth behind the picture—especially since she'd been so upset. But if Blair said the picture was nothing and not true… then…

"Is Jenny here?" Serena said, looking toward the garage door in the middle of the rooms.

"No, she's out somewhere with Asher," Dan said, back to being confused. What did Jenny have to do with their conversation?

Serena sighed with relief. For what she was about to show Dan, she couldn't let _anyone_ overhear or see.

"I'm going to show you something," she said. "And… well, I'll explain after you see it." She took out her phone and found the picture. She really shouldn't show Dan, but she trusted him and knew that she'd keep this secret.

So she showed him the picture.

Dan blanched. He backed up a step and looked at Serena is absolute shock.

"Blair got an abortion?"

"No, that's just what it looks like," Serena said, shaking her head. "Georgina must have been following her this past week and she got in an argument with some woman on the street… or at least that's what Blair said… and it looks like that's what she was doing because of the people with signs in the background, but it's not… but you can't even see where she's at."

"Well, there was a lot of this stuff happening in Philly," Dan said. "Protests with pictures of dead babies on their posters… it made a lot of people upset. It's probably happening around here as well, I just haven't seen it. And with the election coming, the protests are going to be increasing a little… but still… why was Blair even near them?"

Serena closed her eyes for a second. "She told me about the argument, but I… I got the feeling there was something she wasn't telling me…"

"So, do you think she did it, or not?" Dan asked, still a little shocked.

"I don't know," she said, opened her eyes. "I don't think she would. But she was just so upset by it… and she didn't want Chuck to know about it at all. And it doesn't make any sense for her to do it _now_… I mean, it's been months since she was with either of them."

"Dan… please try to understand," Serena begged once again. "Whether this picture shows anything truthfully or not, the fact that it even exists as _well_ as the ones Georgina creepily took while Blair was passed out last night—which had her holding one of those real-life baby dolls… if any of these were released… Blair would be destroyed. And I'm not just saying she won't ever be the most popular girl at school again or anything like that… I mean… _if_ there is any truth to this…" She couldn't finish as tears filled her eyes again and a sob caught in her throat.

"I'll do it," Dan said. He couldn't believe he was going to try to pretend with this insane girl, and he would never admit that she had definitely managed to scare the hell out of him already, but… he couldn't let that happen to Blair. "I'll help you protect her."

* * *

Georgina laughed to herself as she looked at her new photo album on her desktop. She'd taken all of the pictures from her phone and saved them to her computer, enhancing them for maximum affect.

She'd been working on her little mission of destroying all of Serena's friends and family for the past week, the boyfriend and the best friend were the first to set up. She would knock them down soon; she wanted to set up everyone else first.

She even had a list. Now all she had to do was choose.

_eenie, meenie, minee, moe_.

Well, this would actually be one of the easier ones.

* * *

"Oh my gosh, this phone is so horrible," Georgina said. "I swear, when they say the network is following you, they are _so_ lying."

Vanessa nodded uncomfortably. She looked around the food court, hoping Dan would come back soon. He seemed to keep finding excuses to disappear for extended periods of time tonight. She had never really liked this girl that much and, to be honest, she thought she was taking too much of Dan's attention. It was bad enough with Serena doing it, but now this other girl was honing in on Dan, trying to take the place of the BFF. But Vanessa would always be Dan's best friend, no matter who he or _she_ dated.

She wished Nate had been able to join them then she wouldn't feel like such a third wheel. But he'd been forced into dinner with his mother.

"Could I use yours?" Georgina asked as sweetly as possible. She disliked that this girl kept acting like she could care less when _Sarah_ was talking to her. Well, that didn't matter.

Vanessa looked at the girl, startled. "Why don't you just see if you can find a better signal outside or something?"

"Oh, it's not the signal," Georgina whispered, forcing a blush. "I may have gotten a little behind on the bill and…" She tried hard not to laugh. She'd been pretending to be a girl from Brooklyn where it was conceivable that she didn't have the money to pay for things on time, this all would work to her advantage.

Vanessa slowly nodded and slid her phone across the table. She knew how tough it was for a girl to take care of herself. She'd never gotten behind on her cell phone bill because she knew how important it was to her safety and in case work needed to call her, but it happened. She certainly understood that.

"Thank you so much," Georgina said, looking around. She picked up the phone and started dialing a number, but then paused. "You know, it's really loud in here. Would it be possible for me to use this someplace that was quieter?"

Though she wanted to just tell her to give her the phone back and go to hell, Vanessa gave her a tight lipped smile and a nod of acceptance. And where the hell was Dan anyway? He was the reason that this girl was here, and he left her to deal with her? _Not cool, Humphrey_.

* * *

Nate was mumbling his way through dinner. His mother had invited a couple of old friends over and Nate was forced to suffer through.

Then he got a weird text message.

**i need 2tell u sumthin, but i cant do it face2face. i don't know how to say this**

He crinkled his brow. He didn't understand.

**whats up V?**

He'd wanted to spend the evening with his new… female friend. He wouldn't necessarily call her a girlfriend, but he was, for all intents and purposes, dating her. She was so different from anyone he'd ever met and was enjoying getting to know her. He'd been forced into this little dinner thing, but he'd been hoping to break away early with some excuse to see her.

**i did sumthing i'm not proud of, and i'd understand if u wanted to end things…**

What could make him possibly end things? She was like the female Dan, all purposeful and judgmental, except she was better at the snappy come backs. _Ew_, did that mean he was dating Dan? Okay, his thoughts needed to be cleared, _badly_.

**What?**

**sum1 made me an offer a few months back that i couldn't refuse at the time. it was too important…**

**what?**

He was beginning to feel like a broken record. Why wasn't she just spitting it out? Well, typing it, considering they were texting.

**let me call you.**

He sent it before she sent her next one.

**i slept w/Chuck. **

He almost blanched. If that was a joke, he'd have to tell her to work on her sense of humor.

**thats not funny.**

**the video for the grant i was working on, it wasn't panning out and he offered and i shouldn't have…**

He thought he understood what she was saying, but…

**u slept w/ him for **_**money**_**?**

Why the fuck did he get involved with these girls who had a past with Chuck? He couldn't believe what she was saying, but she was saying it… and…

**yes. im sorry**

_Shit._

**so m i. dont contact me again.**

And there was now something _else_ he had to take care of.

* * *

Georgina finished clearing the text messages out of the phone, checking the sent ones and the incoming ones. She had to erase all proof.

Admittedly, she didn't know if Serena really cared all _that_ much about Vanessa, which is why she hadn't done something too big… plus, sending this little information to Nate ensured that both Nate _and_ Chuck would suffer just a little more.

Gossip Girl's posts were always such gold mines of information. She'd seen the one about Chuck giving some girl—and the picture proved to be Vanessa—money out front of Constance. It had given her the idea for her latest… endeavor?

She laughed to herself and made her way back to her table, trying to keep her smirk from going too wide as she made her excuses and left Dan and Vanessa to their pizza. She doubted that she would have to worry about Nate contacting Vanessa again so soon, the boy had probably already deleted Vanessa's number from his cell, but she'd rather not be sitting at the table if Nate proved to be that big of an idiot and _did_ text or call the girl again.

Plus, she had to go home and figure out what she was going to do next!

Georgina hadn't had this much fun in…well… _ever_.

* * *

_To be continued…_


	8. Chapter 8

**REMINDER: **This story takes place after Desperately Seeking Serena (SAT eppy!). Hence, no video has been delivered to Serena. The sex tape does not exist thus far in the world I'm writing in. Doesn't mean I couldn't add one, but for now, it's not there.

* * *

**Chapter Eight**

* * *

Nate excused himself from the table and made a hasty exit before his mother or any of her guests caught wind that something wasn't right.

He just couldn't believe it. Even though the proof was there, in blazing text, he just couldn't rationalize the girl he had come to know with what she'd said.

Sure, everyone had a few skeletons in their closets, but…

He knew she didn't come from money, but she was smart and hard working and…

_This doesn't make sense!_

If she had a bratty younger brother or sister, he'd be halfway tempted to think that someone else used her phone to send those texts, but she didn't have any—just her older _mature_ sister. Plus, how would any of those people even know that Chuck existed?

So who else would send a message like that on _her_ phone except for, well, _her_!

But… he remembered the look on her face when he showed up to take her to the SATs. She was really surprised, but she loved it. He knew how smart she was, especially since she'd bragged about doing so well on the SAT prep tests. He'd arranged for her to take that test because he wanted to do something spontaneous and sweet for _her_.

Blair would have been so pleased at his show of spontaneity if, of course, he'd done it for her. But that was a whole different issue that he wasn't going to think about at the moment.

The fact was, he just couldn't believe that Vanessa would sleep with Chuck. He didn't even think she'd ever met him. When he first started talking to her, it was a while after his fight with Chuck.

Something definitely wasn't right.

He had his hand on the front door, about to leave because he definitely needed some air and a few moments to cool off, when he decided that he was going to call her and really talk to her, to hear the proof from her lips instead of her text.

Then his mother went searching for him.

"Nate, dear," Anne said, walking briskly into the foyer. "Where ever are you going?"

"Mother, I, uh," Nate said stiffly. "Need to go. I'll be back in a little while."

"Nonsense," she said, disapproval heavy on her face. "We have guests and it would be impolite to leave before them."

"This is really—" he began.

"No arguments," she snapped, clasping his arm. "Come back to the party."

_Important,_ he thought.

So then he found himself, once again, sitting at the dinner table trying to make idle chitchat with these people he could care less about.

Well, if he couldn't call her, he might as well try texting her again.

**this doesn't make ne sense. its got2b a joke. u aren't like that.**

**I'm not like what?**

Vanessa wrinkled her nose in confusion and waited. She didn't understand the context of this conversation at all.

She was on her way home. After Sarah left, Dan had been really anxious about something and scoffed down his pizza in two minutes flat before escaping like the hounds of hell were upon him. She didn't know what was with him tonight, but it was really getting to her. Especially since she was actually _relieved_ when Sarah left so she could finally have some alone time with her best friend!

**money from C. u wouldn't do that**

Vanessa blinked. _What?_ What or who was _C_? And she took money from this thing or person? The only people she'd taken any money from in the past little while were… Chuck and Blair. She couldn't help smirking at that whole situation. She'd loved getting one over on that slime, Chuck. It had been all she could think to do to not burst out laughing when she handed over that blank tape. She didn't think Chuck or Blair would ever say anything to Nate about that little exchange, but he must have found out somehow. _Was he talking to Chuck and Blair again?_

**Well yeah, I did.**

Nate pressed his lips together. He was starting to feel this irrational jealousy, and a lot of fury toward Chuck. At the rate Nate was going, the only girl that Chuck hadn't been with _before_ Nate was Serena.

He thought so anyway…

—

Vanessa waited for him to respond, but he didn't. She started to wonder if maybe he had a problem with her basically blackmailing Chuck… but that didn't make sense since _he_ offered the money. _She_ hadn't approached _him_ about selling the tape.

Or maybe he had a problem with her not telling him about the tape back then, before he and Blair got back together… but she didn't know him then; he couldn't possibly be upset about that.

**I'd think you would laugh about it.**

Nate almost dropped his phone under the table. He glanced at his mother to make sure she hadn't seen him with his phone. He was trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, but Vanessa saying crazy things like that was enough to rattle him.

She thought he'd laugh about it? Why the hell would he think her sleeping with Chuck for money would be _funny_?

**i cant belive u'd take it**

Vanessa sighed. Admittedly, it was _not_ her finest hour—great, now she was sounding like Dan even in her head—but it _was_ kind of funny. Two of the most manipulative and powerful teenagers on the Upper East Side were scrambling to be the first to get the tape with the "evidence" on it away from her before the other.

Who wouldn't have taken that money from Chuck? It gave her the perfect opportunity to humiliate him _and_ make him feel like an idiot. Besides, he'd been eager to foist the bills off on her.

**Well, he sort of forced me.**

Anne Archibald and all of her guests looked up, startled, when Nathanial Archibald stood up so fast that his chair fell backwards.

He didn't pause to pick up the chair or to excuse himself or to give his mother some other explanation she wouldn't want to hear.

He just walked out… before he did something stupid like punch a wall… when the only thing he wanted to rid this rage on was Chuck's face.

* * *

"Where are you?" Chuck asked.

"On my way home," Serena replied, stepping expertly around a puddle.

She was anxious to see if Chuck had found anything on Georgina yet. She'd been waiting all day for this phone call.

"Did you get anything?" she asked breathlessly.

"I'll meet you at _your_ home," Chuck said, emphasizing the twinge of bitterness he still felt about being kicked out of the family suite. "Ten minutes. What's your ETA?"

"Five minutes," she said quickly.

She started to say "see you soon" when she heard the dial tone in her ear. She shook her head. Why didn't anyone say "goodbye" or "hello" anymore? Normal phone etiquette had definitely gone out the window a long time ago.

* * *

"Is Chuck Bass in?" he asked softly, trying his best to put his gentleman face on, but it was a heartbeat away from sliding from his face completely.

"No, sir," Dexter replied.

Nate resisted the urge to curse in front of the man and turned away, clamping down on his ire.

He needed to think. He'd gotten more phone calls and texts in the past few minutes; he figured they were from Vanessa or his mother, but he just couldn't read or listen to them right now. He was too far gone and too angry. How the hell had he ever become friends with Chuck? With someone who could force a girl to have _sex_, for crying out loud? And then pay her off to keep her quiet?

He didn't understand why Vanessa hadn't just said that to begin with instead of making him think she'd done it willingly, but he figured some girls were just… confused in those situations.

He didn't know why she hadn't said anything before, or explained things to him better, and he didn't care. He knew what happened now and wasn't going to waste one more minute before making Chuck pay for what he'd done.

Taking his cell phone out, he did the last thing he'd ever thought he'd be doing today.

"Hey…" came a hesitant voice after four rings.

"Chuck," Nate managed to say the name without too much anger reflected in his voice. "I think we need to talk," he breathed out, injecting false concern in his voice. "Where can I meet you?"

There was silence for a moment as Chuck tried to pipe down on the little ray of hope that was starting to shine through, unable to believe that _Nate_ was calling him. Did this mean that Nate was ready to work things out? Chuck couldn't believe it. It was just so unexpected… but vastly wanted.

"Serena's, fifteen minutes," Chuck said, wondering if Nate knew where Serena's new suite was.

When he heard the dial tone in his ear, he figured that Nate must know. Chuck felt a twinge of unease about the abruptness of Nate's ending the call, but the fact that Nate had bothered calling him made him push that feeling away.

Nate turned back to the front desk. "Serena van der Woodsen's room?"

"She is not in either, sir," Dexter replied quickly.

"She will be soon," Nate affirmed, a twisted ironic smile made its way to his lips—this time not forced at all, "as will Chuck."

He nodded in thanks as the man prattled off the number.

* * *

"It was ridiculous, Serena!"

"Dan, calm down," she soothed as she made her way up to her suite. "Did she notice anything was wrong?"

"I don't know!" he ranted nervously. "This is so ridiculous. Of course, I didn't notice any thing; I hardly sat at the table. I kept coming up with some other excuse to get away from her. And I think Vanessa knows something is up. Even if Sar—Georgina didn't notice, Vanessa sure did."

"You didn't tell her anything, did you?" Serena asked worriedly. The less people who knew, the better. And given the fact that Vanessa was currently dating Nate, things could get even stickier if she found out about Blair's secret… whatever that secret may be.

She got off the elevator and made her way down the hall.

"Of course not," Dan said quickly. "But I don't like lying to her."

"You aren't lying to her," Serena said. "You _can_ keep _some_ secrets from your best friend, believe me, I know."

She paused when she turned a corner and saw Nate standing by the door.

He overheard the end of her last sentence and raised an eyebrow at her.

"It'll be fine," Serena said quickly. "I have to go."

"Call me later," he said before she hung up.

"Nate…" Serena said. "What's up?"

"I'm meeting Chuck here," he explained, conveying none of his anger. He didn't want Serena to be tipped off to his real intent for wanting to see Chuck.

She hesitated, slightly shocked, but proceeded forward.

"Well, you might as well wait inside…" she said, going to the door. She forced a smile because she knew Nate wanting to speak to Chuck would be a good thing, she just didn't know why Chuck had sent Nate here when he knew that she was anxious to hear what he had to say. Now she was going to have to wait for Nate to leave before she could question him.

"You do know that he doesn't live here anymore, right?" She still felt bad about that entire situation.

"This is where he said to meet," was all he said before following her in.

He'd actually rather wait outside, but he didn't see any way of refusing without Serena thinking something was up.

"So, how've you been Nate?" she asked as she sat her purse on the hall table and led the way to the sitting room. She was relieved that neither her mother nor Bart was around.

"Okay," he said, tight lipped. "Go ahead and do whatever it is you were planning on doing. I'll just wait here for him," he finished, indicating the couch he settled on.

"Oh," she said, flustered. She did want to check on Blair. She'd stayed with her until she fell asleep then went to talk to Dan. She hadn't spoken to Blair again, but assumed she was still sleeping upstairs in Serena's room. She should go up and warn her to stay put, especially considering who was visiting. "I'll be back down in a few minutes."

"No hurry," he said. And he meant it.

* * *

Chuck waited impatiently for the elevator to reach the Bass penthouse.

He hadn't been back since his father had kicked him out, and he probably wouldn't be here now if it weren't for Serena. Plus, even though there were more pressing matters on his mind, half of him was hoping his father was home and might feel some unexpected burst of fatherly love and tell him to come back.

He doubted it, but, heck, _Nate_ had called him—anything seemed possible that night.

He still had a key, of course, so he let himself in. He estimated that he had maybe five minutes before Nate showed up. He wondered if Serena was already home and was about to go upstairs and look when someone came out of nowhere and slammed into him.

He wasn't expecting it and nearly fell; fortunately he grabbed the banister before he completely made a fool of himself.

"What the fuck?" he snapped, looking up into the eyes of his former… and it looked as though it was _still_ former… best friend.

Nate didn't even reply; he just grabbed him by his lapels and pulled, turning him around before slamming him against the wall.

Chuck groaned when his head hit hard. "Nate, what's your problem?"

"What's _your_ problem?" Nate breathed heavily, still quite upset and knowing that just pushing Chuck around wasn't going to make this anger go away.

So he pulled his arm back and punched him.

Chuck brought his hands up to his face, covering his nose at the pain, and turned, yanking his body away.

"_This_ is why you wanted to meet?" he sputtered out. "Two, three months later, not a word, and all of a sudden you want to beat the shit out of me?"

Nate didn't bother answering, just started advancing on him again.

"Watch it, Nathanial," Chuck muttered. "Last time I deserved it," he pointed out, just to make sure Nate knew that Chuck wasn't going to go down without a fight this time.

Nate barely heard his words, just went after him again. Chuck was prepared this time and managed to get his own punch in before Nate slammed his fist into his stomach.

"What are you guys doing!" Serena almost shouted from the top of the stairs.

She'd just discovered that Blair must have left because she was no longer in bed. She'd tried to call her, but B hadn't answered. She was really worried about Blair and coming downstairs to see Nate and Chuck fighting was _not_ something she needed to deal with right now.

Of course, they barely paid attention to her shout as they kept fighting, each taking turns slamming the other into the wall.

Serena winced as she saw them get dangerously close to a vase that she knew Lily loved—and had paid a small fortune for. She raced down the stairs and tried to get them apart.

They were going crazy on each other though. She couldn't get in between, and she couldn't pull them away from each other. She didn't know how to make them stop, but she kept trying, until a flailing arm came out and accidentally hit her. She didn't even know which one had done it, but her jaw was saying Nate as it screamed in agony along with her vocal chords.

"Shit, Serena," Chuck muttered, suddenly pushing at Nate instead of fighting with him. "Nate, stop it."

Serena's scream had penetrated Nate's haze of fury so that he actually stopped when Chuck said to.

Looking at Serena, Nate saw that her hand was holding the side of her face and tears were coming to her eyes before she turned away.

"What the hell is your problem!" Chuck shouted, pushing at Nate before he went to check out the damage. "Let me see."

Serena shrugged his hand away and shook her head. "What is going on?" she managed to say in a hoarse whisper.

"Believe me when I say, I'd love to know," Chuck said, glaring at Nate. "But we need ice."

"Nate?" Serena asked. "Why are you here?"

"Making a point," he muttered, glaring at Chuck.

"_What_ point?" Chuck said, exasperated. "It's been forever! I stayed away like you told me to. Hell, I've barely spoken to Blair since. You already made your point! This is just… over kill."

"Did you pay off Vanessa?" Nate asked, his eyes spitting fire.

Chuck paused, surprised at the line of questioning. "Well, uh, yeah, but how'd you know about—"

He was interrupted when Nate advanced toward him, yet again. He jumped back.

This time Serena got between them and put her hands up to stop Nate's advancement. "_Nate!_ Leave him alone!"

"Since when are you two so buddy-buddy?" Nate asked suspiciously.

"Nate, I don't know what is going on, but nothing is going to be resolved until you sit down and explain! Chuck didn't do anything to you, at least not today, so what in the world is the matter!" Serena exclaimed.

"What about Vanessa, _Chuck_," Nate said, almost spitting out his name.

"What about her?" Chuck asked. "So I paid her off. She would have told you. It wasn't something I wanted to get out."

Serena barely kept a hold of Nate when he tried to get around her to go after Chuck.

"Why! Why is that making you so angry?" Serena said, trying to hold Nate off. The only reason she was probably able to do so was that he didn't want to hurt her again by being too rough.

"_Why_!" Nate exclaimed. "Do me a favor _Chuck,_ give me a list of all the girls you _haven't_ slept with so I can know who to date, oh, and while you're at it, add a list of the ones you've taken advantage of, so I can beat the shit out of you some more."

"Whoa!" Chuck said, shaking his hands in denial. "I never slept with Vanessa. Just Blair. I swear. And, believe me, she wanted it."

"Then why would she say that you did?" Nate said, not believing Chuck's denial at all.

Chuck almost sputtered. "I don't know! I paid her off, sure, but it was for the tape, not for anything else."

"What tape?" he asked.

Chuck stared at Nate, not comprehending. If Nate didn't know about the tape, then why were they even having this conversation?

"Why exactly did you attack me?" Chuck asked slowly. "The entire story, if you don't mind."

"Yes," Serena nodded, prodding Nate to the couch. "_Explain_ everything. Obviously none of this makes any sense. So just calm down so we can figure out what's going on."

"I got a text from Vanessa earlier," Nate began.

"Okay," Serena said, nodding some more in encouragement.

"She had something to tell me, but she couldn't do it face to face," he said. "She told me that she slept with _you_ for money."

Chuck was beyond perplexed. Why would Punky Brewster say that? The girl was lucky that an Upper East Sider like Nate Archibald would even deign to be seen with her. Why would she lie to him? Especially when she had to know that Nate would get pissed. Plus, why would _he_, Chuck Bass,have anything to do with that vapid piece of work?

"So I texted her back," Nate continued. "I told her I didn't believe it. That I couldn't understand why she would even take the money in the first place. That's when she said that you forced her to."

"Bullshit," Chuck dismissed the entire situation. "I don't know what's gotten into your girl, but I never touched her. I paid her off for a video tape she had of me and Blair talking about having sex," it was the most delicate way he could put it. "She was threatening to put it in her silly little movie, and I couldn't let that happen. It was before you found out…" he trailed off, looking quite disgusted with the whole situation.

Nate suddenly started to feel as though he was missing something. "So, who's lying?"

"Let me see your phone," Serena asked. "The text messages from earlier?"

Nate handed it over and Serena scrolled through.

"Here, this one doesn't make sense," Serena showed Nate.

Nate read it out loud, "**the video for the grant i was working on, it wasn't panning out and he offered and i shouldn't have…"**

"What doesn't make sense about that?" Chuck asked. "Obviously she's the one lying, but that actually _does_ make sense."

"No, it doesn't," Serena shook her head. "She tried to get that grant to pay her rent."

"Exactly," Chuck cut in.

"Her rent was already paid," Serena explained. She knew this entire story. Blair had told her. She also knew that Nate didn't know anything about it, and that even Chuck didn't know all the details. "Vanessa was so pissed at you for insinuating that she _needed_ that money, she gave the original tape back to Blair and then _Blair_ paid Vanessa's rent for a year because she didn't want to owe anyone anything. This entire text doesn't make sense!"

"Then why would she send it?" Nate asked, truly perplexed.

Serena scrolled through the rest of the texts. "Wait a minute."

"What?" Chuck asked.

"The first texts are written like _texts_," Serena said. "Abbreviations and stuff. The later texts are written out, no shortened words, she even capitalized her 'I's and added commas."

"What's that mean?" Nate asked.

"Two different people used her phone," Serena said. "I bet she has no idea what's going on." She was spending way too much time around Chuck if she was all of a sudden noticing odd clues like this. But, at least she noticed.

"But who would do that?" Nate said, flabbergasted. "None of this makes any sense. Who would pretend to be Vanessa?"

Serena looked at Chuck, who nodded.

"Georgina."

"Nate," Serena began, turning back to him. It was time for him to get a clue. "There's something I need to tell you."

* * *

_To be continued…_


	9. Chapter 9

**DEDICATION:** This chapter is dedicated to Melanie, originally **LittleDancer-123x **but she's not on ffNET anymore! :bawl: Anyway, Happy Birthday Melanie! :hugs: Hope it's a great one!

* * *

**REMINDER:** This story takes place after Desperately Seeking Serena (SAT eppy!). Hence, no video has been delivered to Serena. The sex tape does not exist thus far in the world I'm writing in. Doesn't mean I couldn't add one, but for now, it's not there.

* * *

**Chapter Nine**

* * *

"And that's everything," Serena finished the story that she had already told twice today and hoped to never have to tell again.

Silence hung in the room while Nate absorbed everything he'd just learned.

"No," Chuck said. "It's not."

Serena gave him a warning glare. She had deliberately left out the part about Georgina having something on Blair. She didn't want to have to dodge that information with Nate as well. It was bad enough that she'd told Nate that Georgie had drugged both her and Blair; she wasn't telling him anything else.

"Yes," Serena said firmly. "It is."

"You two can't avoid me forever," Chuck threatened. He wanted to know why Blair had gotten so upset this morning. _That_ was why he'd come to meet Serena here in the first place—it wasn't to give her any information on Georgina because he hadn't found any yet. He _needed_ to know what G had on Blair. He couldn't help protect her if he wasn't clued in to everything.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Nate muttered, still a little shell shocked about the whole situation. "But… tell me again why Vanessa can't know about any of this? And why she can't know that Sarah is Georgina? And why is Dan keeping up this farse? He just _agreed_ to it?"

"_Yes_," Serena insisted, eyes warning Chuck once again before she turned her gaze back to Nate. "We want to find something against her to take her down first. So we're going to play along, make her think she's still playing us."

"She is!" Nate said harshly, still unable to believe how messed up the entire situation had become with Vanessa and Chuck.

"But you know what's happening now," Serena explained, wincing as she turned her ice pack and managed to find an even colder spot, if that were possible.

"Vanessa doesn't," he muttered, toning down his voice at the reminder that he'd managed to hurt her and was responsible for that ice pack.

"The more people who know, the more likely she is to figure out that we're trying to buy time," she continued.

"But _why_ are we trying to buy time?" Nate asked, still not following this line of reasoning.

"_Yes,_ Serena," Chuck said pointedly. "Why _are_ we trying to buy time?"

Serena was saved from having to answer that question by the ring of her cell phone. She glanced at the caller ID.

"I have to take this," she murmured, throwing her ice pack down and going to the other side of the room.

"B," she whispered, "Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine," Blair said. "What's with the whispering?"

"Nothing," she said, giving more firmness to her voice. "Where are you? I checked upstairs and you were—"

"Oh, I was feeling better so I left," Blair said. "You probably only missed me by a few minutes. Sorry I missed your call, I forgot I had it on vibrate while I was asleep at your place."

"So where are you now?" Serena asked.

"In la eleva_tor_," Blair said with a phony accent, trying to convey some joy that she wasn't feeling. _Damn Georgina Sparks to hell._

"At the Palace?"

"At home," Blair said simply. _Ding! _"Ah, home at last. Seriously, Serena, I'm fine. I'm assuming Dan agreed?"

"Yes, he agreed," Serena said. "But, I—"

"Great," Blair said dismissively as she walked up to the hall table and saw a large package waiting, addressed to her. "And about that other thing, it was nothing; don't worry about it, S."

"I don't think that's entirely true," Serena said, glancing over her shoulder to make sure the guys hadn't moved. They were still right where she'd left them, though she could tell Chuck, at least, was straining his ears to overhear the conversation.

"Honestly, Serena, you're my best friend," Blair said as she pulled the bow tie and string off the package and began to open the box. "You, of all people, should believe me when…."

Serena frowned. "B?"

There was no sound. Nothing. Blair had just stopped talking. Serena checked her phone, but it was clear that the signal hadn't been lost.

"B?" Serena said louder, cursing because she knew it would draw Chuck and Nate's attention.

"What?" Chuck said, starting toward her.

"B!" Serena said again, not liking the overwhelming feeling of dread that was seeping into her at the sudden silence. "What's wrong?"

And then Serena heard the most heart wrenching scream rip through the air waves. It was so loud, both Chuck _and_ Nate heard it from across the room.

"Jesus," Chuck whispered. He'd never heard that sound coming from anyone ever before, and he really didn't want to hear it ever again.

"Blair? Can you hear me? I'm on my way," Serena said into the phone as she ran for the front door. "I'll be right there!"

"Where is she?" Chuck said as he followed her out the door, Nate right behind them.

"At her house," she said, still holding the phone to her ear. She directed her attention back to it. "Blair? Talk to me sweetie, what's wrong?"

"Is she saying anything?" Chuck asked.

Serena shook her head as they all got onto the elevator.

"Damn it, Serena," Chuck cursed. "If you had told me what Georgina had on her to begin with, I could have done something to prevent whatever the hell is going on."

"_I_ don't even know what's really going on," she exclaimed. "I don't know why she screamed, I don't know why she won't respond, all I know is that she _did_ scream and now she's not talking, but she hasn't hung up her phone. I'm worried, and I'm going over there and I don't _care_ what you want to know! I just want to make sure she's okay!"

"She's _not_ okay," Chuck griped. "An eff-ing psychopath is after her. Who knows what the hell Georgina did now?"

"But she already went after Blair!" Serena said. "It doesn't make any sense! Why would she do something else to her?"

"Because she's the best friend," he spat out. "Georgina _wants_ to have Blair's position in your esteem. She doesn't have it. She's jealous of Blair. She's going to go after her the worst."

"That I know," Serena muttered just as the doors to the elevator opened.

"There's a limo waiting," Chuck said, nodding toward the front doors.

"Wait," Nate said, trying to follow the conversation and still a little unhinged by everything that he had learned and everything that was happening now. "Georgina has something on Blair? What?"

"An excellent question," Chuck muttered, not wanting to talk to Nate at the moment. Nate had yet to apologize for bashing his face in over one of Georgina's lies. And even though they hadn't made up or anything, Chuck didn't take kindly to having his face bashed in.

"Shut up, Chuck," Serena ordered before running for the car, not caring if the other two were following at the same speed or not.

Once all three were in the car and Serena had yelled at the driver to step on it, Chuck looked at Serena and said softly, "Sooner or later, you're going to tell me."

"Just leave it alone, Chuck," Serena pleaded, her eyes actually begging. "Just leave it alone."

Chuck just looked away. He was going to find out one way or another. They just had to get to Blair first.

* * *

_Ding!_

"Blair?" Serena called as soon as the doors opened to the penthouse. She looked around but didn't see anything out of the ordinary, and she didn't see Blair.

Then she noticed two things.

First, the cell phone was lying on the floor, still on the call to Serena's. She picked it up and ended the call, then she closed her own phone.

"I'll check upstairs," Chuck said, breezing past Serena for the stairs.

Then she noticed the hall table. There was some sort of cloth on the edge that looked to be lying over something. It wasn't something she would normally see at the Waldorf's.

"No, wait," Serena managed to say to Chuck. She didn't want him going upstairs if she didn't know what was wrong with Blair. She had a feeling that whatever was going on had something to do with Georgina, and if it _did_… she needed to help Blair keep this secret, whatever it was, from Chuck and Nate.

She didn't pull the cloth off, instead she wrapped her arms around the edges, wrapping the cloth around the box at the same time. Then she went for the stairs. She passed Chuck who had paused on the steps at her insistence.

"If she's up there, I'll let you know," she said in passing. "Just stay here for now."

"Serena…" he didn't like any of this at all, and he was especially curious about whatever Serena was holding in her arms. Was that responsible for making Blair scream the way she had?

"_Don't_ argue with me!" she snapped, leaving no room for argument. "Please, Chuck, just let me do this."

He bristled but gave a sweeping gesture with his hand for her to proceed.

She went up the stairs, pausing at the top to make sure he wasn't following her.

She barely paid any attention to Nate who was waiting at the bottom of the steps, not entirely sure what to do with himself. He was pissed at Blair, for sure, but she was still his ex-girlfriend and, well, _former_ friend of many years. He'd heard that scream too and the shiver that went down his spine told him that he needed to put all this crap aside because Blair needed them all right now.

Chuck didn't look back at Nate; he just kept shifting on the stairs, facing the top, waiting for that moment of confirmation from Serena.

It was a long time coming.

* * *

"B?" Serena said softly as she entered Blair's room. "Are you in here?"

She looked around and didn't see anyone, so she went into the bathroom, dreading what she might find… but Blair wasn't in there either.

She went back out into the room and looked around again. She was about to leave, thinking Blair wasn't there, when she heard a sound that was somewhere between a sob and a hiccup.

It was coming from the floor on the other side of the bed.

Serena quickly went around the bed, tossing the package on the comforter, before kneeling next to Blair who was curled into a ball with her back against the wall.

"B?" she said, reaching out to touch her shoulder. "It's okay. I'm here. She can't hurt you."

Serena became even more worried when it seemed as though Blair was just continuing to stare into space, rocking slightly in her little ball, and wasn't going to respond… she seemed to be in shock.

She slid her hand up and down Blair's back, trying to comfort her. "Everything will be okay."

Blair finally turned her head. "Why is she doing this?"

"I'm sorry, B" Serena whispered. "I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault," Blair whispered back. "It's mine."

"You didn't do anything, B," Serena said. "It was all Georgina, okay? Not you. She's just trying to hurt you. Don't let her get to you. You can do this. We can do this. We can get through anything together, remember?"

Blair turned her head back to the position it was in when Serena first arrived and stared off into space again.

"I saw the box downstairs," Serena began, broaching the subject.

Blair jerked and stared at Serena in horror. "Where is it? Did you open it?"

"No, and it's on the bed, but I can—"

"Get rid of it! Get rid of it! Get rid of it! Get rid of it!" Blair started demanding repeatedly, clearly distressed.

"Okay, okay!" Serena got up quickly and went to the bed. She grabbed it and went for the door, but paused.

"Blair, I don't think—" she started to explain that it wasn't a good idea to bring it back downstairs because Chuck and Nate were there, but Blair didn't let her get that far.

Blair covered her head with her arms and curled into a ball again. "Getridofit! Getridofit! Getridofit!" she cried, her words jumbled and muffled.

Serena hesitated before going out the door. She looked around, trying to figure out what to do. She didn't know what was in the box, but if she went downstairs, the guys would want to see it. She wanted to look inside the box herself, but she didn't want to do it in front of them. She decided to go down the hall to Eleanor's room.

"She's here. She's fine," she remembered to call down the steps as she passed. She'd told Chuck she'd tell him if she found Blair, now was as good a time as ever.

"Just stay there. We'll be down in a few minutes." She kept walking by and thought for a second before backing up. "Get Dorota."

Chuck, who was still standing in the middle of the stairs, looked at Nate, who was still standing at the bottom.

They'd been standing in silence, not speaking to one another while they waited. Chuck was still pissed at Nate for attacking him, and Nate was still pissed at Chuck for sleeping with Blair.

But both of them had heard Blair's scream and both were _not_ leaving.

Nate nodded and went to find the housekeeper.

Chuck watched him go, momentarily startled that even though all this bad crap had happened between them, they could still understand each other without words.

He looked back up the stairs, grimacing. He was chafing at the bit to go up there. He didn't like this at all.

He'd wait, though, but Serena had better involve him soon.

* * *

Silently thanking God that Eleanor was away on a business trip, Serena ran into her room. She put the box on the bed and ran for the bathroom.

She found a trash bag that was big enough and, fortunately, dark enough, so that she could put the box in the bag and have Dorota get rid of it.

She went back over to the bed and hesitated.

She only had a matter of minutes before Dorota came up the stairs. If she was going to look at it, it was now or never.

She rested her hand on top of the box, still debating in her head.

Finally she took a deep breath and decided.

She opened the box.

_Oh_

_My_

_God_

She slammed the lid shut at the same time that she clamped her eyes closed, but no matter how hard she pressed her lids together it wouldn't erase the memory of what she'd just seen.

The plastic real life baby doll that Georgina had posed Blair with in her sleep the night before, the one with short dark hair and pale white skin, the one that opened and closed its eyes when you picked it up and laid it down… it was in the box… but it had been pulled apart… just pieces of doll on top of each other.

And written on the bottom of the lid in dark red marker was '_Mommy!_'

She grabbed the trash bag and opened it as quickly as her shaking fingers would allow. She put the box in the bag and nearly broke a nail trying to tie the top of the bag into a knot.

She finished at the same time that she saw Dorota come up the stairs through Eleanor's bedroom door. She called, "Here!" her voice nearly croaking. She didn't need the woman going into Blair's room just now.

Fortunately, Dorota heard her and came down the hall, frowning in concern.

"I-I need you to throw this away," Serena whispered hoarsely.

"Miss Serena, there is trash can in bathroom," Dorota said, nodding toward the room, wondering why Serena was in this room to begin with.

Serena shook her head. "Take the service entrance. Go outside, take a cab. Go to the other side of the city, and find a trashcan to throw this into." She shoved the bag toward the woman. "Tell no one where you are going or where you went."

"But…" Dorota was very confused by this request, especially since it hadn't come from Miss Blair.

"Blair said to do this," Serena said quickly but firmly. "Take it!"

Dorota reached out for the bag, but uncertainty was still on her face.

"Don't look in it, and don't keep it. Throw it away. And when you go downstairs, do _not_ let the guys _near_ this bag, do you understand?" Serena said, using a tone of voice she'd never used before but had heard Eleanor Waldorf use on many occasions.

"Understood, miss," Dorota said demurely, agreeing.

"Don't even look at them on the way down. Don't hesitate and don't speak to them. Just walk by and go straight for the service entrance," Serena reiterated. She didn't know if Chuck would let Dorota go by without asking her questions. She knew that Chuck would probably take the first opportunity to search for that bag and it needed to be _far_ away when he decided to.

Dorota's eyes furrowed suspiciously. "This isn't girls up to no good?"

"Of course not," Serena snapped. "Nothing illegal at all. You mean too much to Blair for her to involve you in anything like that. Now, go! Please, go now."

Dorota nodded, appeased by Serena's words.

"Now, quickly," Serena said, motioning Dorota toward the hall.

She watched the woman scamper down the hall and the steps. She sighed with relief when she heard the patter of her feet go down the hall toward the kitchen and the service entrance.

Then she took a deep breath.

It was time to talk to Blair.

* * *

"Blair?" Serena said softly on entering the room and closing the door, pausing to lock it. "I got rid of it." She grimaced at the phrase. Blair _had _used it earlier, so there shouldn't be any problem with it…

But between the package and Blair's reaction to it, plus everything she'd seen and heard throughout the day, she had come to the conclusion that Blair _really_ had an abortion.

She didn't think it would be possible for Blair to do something like that without telling _her_, her best friend. But it looked like she'd done it and there was nothing to do but ask Blair for the truth...

And then figure out how to get the guys downstairs to leave without hearing _that_ truth.

During the time she was out of the room, Blair had risen to a sitting position. Her back was still against the wall and she had her knees drawn up to her chest, crouched over them miserably.

Serena walked around the bed again and stood silently by before sinking to the floor in front of her. "B… I opened it."

She winced in preparation, thinking Blair might start another tirade, but instead of her earlier fit, Blair just took a deep breath.

Then she began to talk.

"First day back to school, Gossip Girl wondered where the dethroned royalty vacationed these days," she began, the bitterness and irony heavy in her voice.

"You were home," Serena said softly, questioning. She'd been to see Blair a couple of times during spring break. She would have known if Blair wasn't at home.

Blair shook her head. "Not the entire time."

Serena's throat started to clog with the tears that she'd been holding on to ever since she'd opened that box.

"B, were you pregnant?" she didn't know how to ask her best friend if she'd had an abortion. It wasn't something she could force herself to come out and say.

Blair's eyes were wide, unseeing. "I didn't know." She started to rock forward as the story fell out. "I mean, I'd taken the test and everything was supposed to be fine. And then my period, it still wasn't coming, but I put it out of my head and finally… it came." Blair's back stiffened when she said the last two words.

Serena's eyes widened in realization, "Oh, B…"

"I didn't even know, Serena," Blair said, clamping her eyes shut. "I didn't even get the chance to decide _any_thing. The cramps, everything was just so horrible. I had to go to the hospital. That's when I found out."

Serena couldn't lie to herself. The relief she was feeling nearly brought tears to her eyes again. Blair hadn't aborted the baby. She'd lost it.

"How did I not know about this?" she finally asked.

Blair gasped around a sob and laughter. "You were too busy moving in with the Bass'. No one noticed."

Serena felt a pang of guilt. She knew that Blair would be alone during spring break with her not around, but she'd had to get her things together and try to adjust to living with Chuck and Bart. It was her mother's dictate.

"But someone did," Serena finally said. "Otherwise, how did Georgina know?"

Blair laughed bitterly. "She doesn't. All she saw was that argument I had last week. She must have decided that a picture like that would be great ammunition even if it wasn't the truth."

"What happened last week? Why were you outside an abortion clinic, arguing with that woman?" Serena asked, still confused by everything.

"That's just it!" Blair exclaimed. "I wasn't even _near_ a place like that!"

"Then how—" Serena started.

"These people were just randomly picketing! I was going to meet Is and Nelly Yuki in the city, and there they were!" she said. "I don't know why they were there, and I tried to avoid them, I really did."

"So, what happened?" Serena remembered Dan talking about people forming groups in different cities, like Philadelphia, and randomly picketing. _What else had he said about it?_

"The signs, they were just so… _horrible_," Blair said, her voice catching in her throat.

That's when Serena remembered, and she shuddered. _Dead babies_. Dan said those people would put these sick pictures on those posters. They did it to make a point, that abortion was killing innocent babies.

They never took into account the fact that seeing something like that could be traumatizing for other people, ones who hadn't had an abortion and never considered it.

"I tried to ignore it and keep going," Blair breathed. "I'd been doing a good job of forgetting about it—that was all I _could_ do, you know? But then the women kept approaching people, and one woman came to me and… I just couldn't stop thinking about everything. I remember having this one moment of relief that the decision _had_ been taken away from me. And it just made me feel so guilty, S. So I lashed out at that woman. I don't even remember what I said, but… as you can see, it wasn't pretty."

"Georgina lucked out in the worst way possible," she continued. "She can't possibly know the truth. _No one_ knows. She probably sent that package as a warning for both of us to keep silent. She wanted to remind us that _she's_ the one in control," she finished bitterly.

"I'm so sorry, B," Serena whispered again, not knowing what else to say.

Blair just shrugged, but she laid her head back down on her knees.

"We need to do something," Serena said. "Find something on her and use it against _her_. We need to get back _in_ control. We cannot allow those pictures to be released."

"You said Chuck was looking into it," Blair mumbled. "Did he find anything yet?"

"No… and, speaking of Chuck…," Serena said, her eyes going to the bedroom door, she needed to tell Blair, "and Nate…"

"What about them?" Blair asked, tight lipped, stiffening her back at their names.

"They're downstairs, waiting," Serena explained.

Blair turned her head to look at Serena in horror. "_What?_"

"Don't worry, they don't know anything, B," Serena was quick to reassure. "I had Dorota dispose of the box, and the guys don't know anything that's going on. They heard the scream through my cell phone and wanted to come with me to make sure you were okay."

"They—they did?" Blair asked in a small voice. Her vulnerable side was showing, but she didn't care. This was Serena. And she could say or do anything she wanted around her.

"Yes," Serena gave a small smile. "They were worried."

"But… why were they together? Have they settled things then?" she asked, glad to deflect the subject of discussion away from her for the moment.

"No," Serena shook her head. "Georgina caused some trouble between Nate and Vanessa and involved Chuck. Nate attacked Chuck again. I got them to cool off and found out that it was Georgie. I also had to tell Nate the truth."

Slightly disquieted upon hearing more about how the brief glimpse she'd had of Nate with Michael Moore was playing out, Blair swallowed and managed to spit out the next words. "What did you tell him?"

"Everything that Chuck knows," Serena clarified quickly.

Blair just rolled her eyes and nodded. That meant Nate knew she'd been drugged. _Great._

"B… they're going to want to know something," Serena said.

"Well what do you want me to do, Serena?" Blair snapped. "I can't tell them the truth. Just send them on their merry way. Tell them I'm fine. Tell them I saw sneak peeks for the new Valentino fall line. Tell them anything, I don't care. Just don't tell them about any of this… _stuff_!" She finished, having lack of a better word.

"Chuck won't buy any of that," Serena insisted. "We need something better to tell him. Maybe we should just tell him—,"

"No! Neither of them can ever know," Blair raised her hand and held it pushed toward Serena. "Don't even _think_ about it!"

"Blair… whose…?" Serena tried to ask the other question that had been shooting through her head since this conversation began.

Blair looked away and shook her head. "I don't know. I don't _know_!" She looked back at Serena with beseeching eyes. "That's why you can't tell them. I don't want both of them thinking that their…" she couldn't say it. She tried, but she couldn't. "It hurts too much to think about it."

Serena agreed, nodding. She understood completely. Nate and Chuck, for all their faults, were still human beings. They may not have wanted to be fathers, but that didn't mean they wouldn't have any feelings on the matter.

"They can never know," Serena agreed. "We'll come up with something to tell them."

"Thanks, S," Blair said.

"I love you, B," Serena said. "We'll get through this somehow. And everything that you just told me? It will never be mentioned again."

"Never," Blair agreed, but her eyes looked a little dim.

"We'll take it to the grave," Serena finished, wondering if that was a little over dramatic. But, no, it was the truth.

"To the grave," Blair finished.

* * *

"She what?" Chuck said, startled. Then he tried to stop it, but he couldn't.

He smirked.

"I'm sure you find it all very fascinating," Serena said, rolling her eyes. "But this is very traumatic for Blair. It's not everyday—"

"That you make out with a girl?" Chuck said, giving a short laugh. He was relieved that it wasn't something more serious. "I do it all the time."

"Shut up," Serena said, smacking him on the arm. "This is _Blair_. It was bad enough when everyone found out she slept with _you_. Can you imagine if everyone found out about _this_?"

Chuck guffawed. Leave it to Blair to act all melodramatic over some lesbian action. Actually, as much as he hated Georgina, he couldn't help but be a little turned on by the imagery.

Serena was secretly pleased at Chuck's reaction. Blair had shown Serena the pictures Georgina had originally sent _Blair_, the ones when she kissed her cheek and posed with her. That's when they decided to make the boys think that Georgina had made out with a passed out Blair. Blair would definitely have been horrified by something like that, though not nearly as traumatized.

"So, where's the money shot?" Chuck managed to ask through his amusement.

"The what?" Serena asked, totally confused.

"The one that was so horrible it made Blair cry?" Chuck asked. He was dying to see this one. "This little cheek bit is nothing. Where's the real action?"

Serena glowered at him; she knew exactly why he wanted to see that supposed picture. "If you needed to see that one, I would show it to you."

"It will be _very_ crucial to the investigation," Chuck said, nodding and smirking.

Nate wanted to butt in with an 'is that _all_ you think about?' but realized that really _was_ all Chuck thought about. So he decided to keep his mouth shut.

"Chuck Bass, could you for once think about someone other than yourself?" Serena snapped. "We need your help. Are you going to help or not?"

He rolled his head to the side, contemplating. "It's not like I have anything better to do. Plus, ruining someone? I'm in. Let the games begin."

Serena looked to Nate. "I know you probably—"

"I'm in," he said quickly.

Serena opened and closed her mouth, frankly surprised. "You are?"

"If I leave now, who knows when anyone will fill me in again? After what happened today? I don't need any more bombs being dropped," Nate said.

He didn't want to admit that he'd also missed hanging with them all. He'd been hanging with them so long that he couldn't remember when it didn't feel natural. It felt good to be with them, even though he was on very shaky ground with Chuck. He had thought about apologizing for that bit earlier, but hadn't found the words yet.

Serena just nodded. "Well, as you can see, everything's taken care of. So, you can go now. See you in school tomorrow."

"Wait, so what made her scream?" Chuck asked, wondering what else Georgina might have concocted for this plan.

"Special delivery," Serena said. "A box of pictures from last night. They made Blair… slightly distressed."

Chuck perked up. "Pictures, hmm?"

"Gross," Serena rolled her eyes at Chuck's obvious enthusiasm. "Besides, they have been disposed of."

"Shame," he said. "Well, give her my regards."

"I will," Serena said.

* * *

_Eenie meenie mineie moe_

_Catch a tiger by its toe_

_If it hollers, let it go_

_Eenie meenie mineie moe_

Georgina grinned.

Well, the rest of her list wasn't _that_ long, and there was one other person she might have chosen first, but this might actually work out in her favor.

She could hardly wait.

* * *

Dan sighed as he entered the loft early in the evening Monday night.

He was tired. He'd just spent most of the afternoon doing everything around the city to keep from going home.

Home. Where he left his cell phone on purpose just so he didn't have to lie to Sarah later when he told her he had _left_ his phone home.

After his lovely evening with Vanessa and the person otherwise known as Sarah the night before, he'd gone straight home, relieved to escape. He knew he'd been a little weird with Vanessa. He hoped she forgave him for acting the way he had been. He couldn't tell her what was really going on, he'd promised Serena.

He just hoped that Satan, er, Sarah person hadn't realized something was up considering his behavior last evening. He's gone to dinner, but he hadn't been able to keep still for long.

How _do_ you avoid someone when you're supposed to be out _with_ them? Simple. Bathroom breaks. Cell phone breaks, "Yeah, it's too loud in here and I've got to make a call!" Food situations, "I said no onions in this salad, behold the onions! Let me go get a new one."

He'd never made so many excuses in his life.

But… he was doing this for Serena… well, more so for Blair. He needed to try to keep up pretenses. It wasn't his fault that he wasn't devious though. But he was trying. He guessed that was all he could do really.

He just hoped this was over sooner rather than—

"Dan! Finally! You didn't answer your phone, and I was worried about you so I stopped by!" The-person-formerly-known-as-Sarah exclaimed from her seat at the table.

"Sarah," Dan said, remembering to call her by her alias while trying to infuse some sort of enthusiasm in his voice. "Yeah, the phone, I, yeah. Accident. Forgot it."

"It happens to me all the time," Georgina said, shrugging it off. "But this totally worked out!"

"Hey, Dan," Jenny said as she left her room and returned to her seat at the table.

"Jenny," Dan acknowledged her, a sick feeling spreading through his stomach.

"I never knew you had such an awesome little sister," Georgina exclaimed, grinning knowingly at Jenny. "Where _have_ you been keeping her all this time?"

Dan was speechless.

He looked back and forth between the two of them, fighting the urge to look upwards and pray for deliverance from this situation.

It was time to call Serena.

_Houston, we have a problem._

* * *

_To be continued…_

**NOTE: **The story about the rallies against abortion in Philadelphia was actually from two years ago (2006). I know that in Maryland right now, University of Maryland Medical Systems are gearing up to do the same thing. I am unaware—haven't done that much research—if it _has_ happened in New York yet, but for this story, I decided to write that it had. I wanted to let you know that this is actually something that can and could happen, just so the story doesn't seem so far fetched. :)


	10. Chapter 10

**REMINDER: **This story takes place after Desperately Seeking Serena (SAT eppy!). Hence, no video has been delivered to Serena. The sex tape does not exist thus far in the world I'm writing in. Doesn't mean I couldn't add one, but for now, it's not there.

* * *

**Chapter Ten**

* * *

"She's there _now_?"

"No, she just left," Dan replied. "No way was I leaving her alone with Jenny long enough to call you. "

"You said she came by just to see you?" Serena asked.

"Yeah, but then she started talking to Jenny while she was waiting and…" Dan trailed off, rubbing his head in frustration.

"Dan, I think it'll be okay," Serena said. "Why would she go after Jenny? I hardly talk to her any more and she's not someone I would include on my list of _loves_."

"Well, you wouldn't include Chuck on that list either, and _she_ certainly did," he said with disgust.

"He's going to be my step brother, she probably just assumed… besides, we grew up together," Serena explained.

"Wait, you're not… are you telling me that you _love_ Chuck Bass?" Dan couldn't resist asking.

"Ew! No! Gross!" she exclaimed. "He's just a very old friend, one who is very annoying at times."

"If you say so," he replied. He had to admit, Serena had a point about Jenny. There wasn't really any reason for her to go after Jenny to begin with… except…

"But she did try something with Vanessa," he pointed out. He'd been astounded when Serena told him about Georgina's phone manipulation. He was just glad Vanessa hadn't gotten hurt from that situation. "You don't _love_ her very much either."

"She didn't hurt Vanessa," Serena explained. "She _used_ Vanessa. To get to Nate and Chuck."

"Well, what if she decides to _use_ Jenny?" he asked. He was _not_ going to address her feelings about Nate; that was for sure.

"Dan, that's why you're the inside guy," Serena explained. "So we can be prepared. Blair's on the lookout for Jenny anyway." She didn't explain that further, he should already know about the war going on between the two of them. "We'll just take extra precautions around her."

"Serena, I don't want Jenny to have anything to do with her," he said, frustration building.

"Dan, if you tell Jenny who she can and cannot talk to, she's not going to listen to you," Serena said slowly. "You know that, don't you?"

"Well, she is pretty busy with the other girls and Asher, this guy she's been talking to," Dan said, thinking things through. "She won't have time for another friend right now."

"Exactly," she reassured. "Just stay calm. Everything's going to be alright."

"How can you know for sure?" he asked, suddenly feeling even more nervous.

"Because between all five of us, we should be able to dig something up to make her go away," Serena said. Between Chuck, Blair, Dan, Nate, and her, they could get this done… just as long as Blair held up and the secret managed to stay secret.

"So, how are things with Blair? Did you find out anything?" he asked.

He hadn't gotten to see Serena at all in school today. She was apparently glued to Blair's side all day long. He knew that Georgina had tried something with Blair again, but the details Serena gave were fuzzy. And the question about Blair possibly getting an abortion was still unanswered.

"Dan, the picture wasn't what we thought it was, just forget about that," Serena said, hoping he wouldn't hear the lie in her voice. She'd promised Blair that they would take the secret about her miscarriage to the grave. She hadn't been able to tell Blair that in her bid to get Dan to _agree_ to the plan, she had to show him the picture.

"Okay?..." Dan trailed off. "So, if it's not what we thought it was, there's no reason for me to keep acting with Sar—I mean, Georgina, right?"

"_No!_" Serena almost yelped. "Not right, not okay. Just please, Dan? Keep it going a little longer? Chuck will figure something out. Please?" She didn't know what to do if he didn't agree.

"And how is he going to do that?" Dan asked. "He's leaving for his father's bachelor party this week, isn't he?"

"All the more reason to _not_ try to figure this out right now," Serena said. "My mother is getting married next week. The entire thing will be ruined if I end up going to jail!"

"You aren't going to go to jail, Serena," Dan said firmly. "I told you, you did nothing wrong. You tried to help him."

"I don't want to take that chance," Serena said, her voice was getting clogged as she tried to hold on to her tears. "Just keep up the pretense another week. Please? After the wedding, if we've found nothing, I'll turn myself in and we'll be done with Georgina for good." At least she hoped Chuck found something in a week. There was no way she could possibly turn herself, and Georgina, in with that picture of Blair looming over her head.

She'd just have to cross that bridge when she came to it.

"Okay," Dan finally agreed, cursing himself for it and still worried about Jenny. "But only until after the wedding."

"Thank you."

* * *

"Hello, love."

"Georgina," Serena said warily, glancing at Blair who raised her head quickly. "Why are you calling me?"

"Just wanted to check in," Georgina said gaily. "How goes Snow White and her little dwarfs: sleazy, dumbass, and slutty? Did she get my present?"

"You're insane," Serena said, adding as much menace to her voice as possible. "That was beyond sick."

And she wondered how Georgina found out about Nate being involved in their lives again. He had to be the "dumbass" Georgina was referring to. Maybe Georgina had known all along that using Vanessa to get to Nate would bring Nate back into the group… but why would she want to get the four of them back together? None of this made any sense… but then, Georgina wasn't making much sense.

"Well, I would have sent a shiny apple, but I figured the apple of _her_ eye would be better," Georgina said, amusement swelling her voice.

Serena's mouth dropped open and she clenched her eyes shut as the image of the doll flashed through her head again. "You know, it would be even more disturbing if Blair actually _had_ an abortion."

She and Blair had decided that since Georgina couldn't possibly know that Blair had a miscarriage, they weren't going to act like Blair had, in fact, lost a baby. There was no need to give Georgina more information to use.

"She didn't? Aw, that's a shame," Georgina said teasingly. "Tell Blair she's ruining my fun!"

"I'll do that," Serena said between clenched teeth. She gave a nod to Blair to let her know everything was okay, that apparently Georgina believed her lie.

"Actually, she's not," Georgina said abruptly. "Because it doesn't matter if it's true or not. One photo sent to that silly little blogger and Blair is done for good. There's no redeeming yourself from that one. No prince charming is going to come along and make that poisonous slumber go away."

Serena was getting tired of the fairy tale analogies. Georgina had always lived in another world, one usually inhabited by girls with various accents. If Serena hadn't been so drunk most of the time, she might have realized sooner that Georgina didn't just _pretend_ to be other people—she _became_ them. Thinking back, Serena could remember entire evenings when Georgina played a certain character. She'd never thought twice about it because that was just Georgie being funny.

It wasn't funny anymore.

"So, was there a point to your call? Besides to threaten me and spout tall tales?" Serena finally asked, absolutely frustrated.

"But, Serena, you're my best friend," Georgina said in wonderment. "Best friends talk everyday, don't they?"

"Best friends also don't try to hurt each other," Serena deadpanned.

"Oh, don't be silly," Georgina laughed. "Best friends hurt each other all the time. For instance, _you_ hurt me. Now, it's my turn!"

"You've already succeeded, Georgina," Serena said. "So can we let bygones be bygones then?"

"That's where you're wrong, and why it's clear that _you're_ the blonde part of this friendship," Georgina explained. "I haven't hurt you yet! I've just sent some pictures, some presents, made a few threats, tried to break up a couple… none of it hurt _you_ sweetie. It just made you feel really guilty."

"It hurts, Georgina," Serena said quietly.

"Oh, come on!" Georgina exclaimed. "Where's that stiff upper lip? Where's that backbone? Chin up! Roll with the punches."

_Great_, Serena thought. _Now she's speaking in old slang terms._

"Will you please stop?" Serena tried to beg once again. "You've made your point. I'll… I'll be your friend again. We'll go out, hang. We could even go shopping. I'll be right there by your side until you have to return to boarding school."

There was silence on the other end for a disturbingly long amount of time.

"Georgina?" Serena finally asked.

There was still silence.

Then came the laughter.

Serena shivered. She couldn't help it. That laugh sounded like pure evil.

"Soon, S," Georgina finally said when the laughter ebbed. "We'll be together soon."

Serena started to respond but could already hear the little bubble noise her cell phone made when a call ended.

She looked at Blair.

"I think she just threatened me, but I'm not sure with what," Serena said, confused and anxious.

"It's just a threat," Blair said calmly. She was doing much better after the horror of yesterday evening. She'd already had a while to adjust to the news of her miscarriage. And though it was like pouring salt into a wound, the wound had healed marginally before Georgina's stunt. She was going to be okay—well, okay as she could be anyway—and she was more determined than ever to send Georgina back to whatever hell hole she came from.

"I'm sure Chuck will find something before she can see it through," Blair explained. It amazed her that she was speaking of him as if she had complete faith in his abilities. Just like back when she used to trust him. She needed to stop those thoughts. She _didn't_ trust him. And never would again.

"But Dan is right," Serena said, throwing her hands up before going to plop on the bed next to Blair. "Chuck _has_ to go to that bachelor getaway. He's best man; Bart would never let him stay behind. So, he's leaving in two days. What if he doesn't find something by then? And if Georgina really tries to use Jenny for something, what then?"

"Right now, Jenny is more concerned about trying to maintain a place on the A-list," Blair said with disgust. "Even if Georgina helps her, I've got that little wannabe covered. And Georgina won't use her ace in the hole unless she absolutely has to. She's not going to show Jenny that picture. Personally, I think it's stupid to use Jenny against me. Won't I see that coming? Are you even sure that she'll be coming after _me_ again?"

"Chuck said that Georgina is jealous of you because you're my best friend and she wants to be," Serena said, recalling Chuck's words. "Who knows what she'll do next, but I have no doubt she'll try something else."

"Well, I'll be ready?" Blair tried to soothe, but knew the words came out choked. She wasn't going to be ready. She hadn't been prepared at all for yesterday's multiple attacks. First she was drugged, then she was threatened with life destroying pictures making her relive the absolute worst day of her life, and _then_ she was sent that monstrosity of a gift. Georgina had struck hard and fast and Blair was still reeling.

"I just wish it were me," Serena said, agonizing over everything. "I wish she'd found incriminating pictures of _me_. I wish… I wish… then, at least, I could just go ahead to the authorities with everything. But I can't do this to you. I'm so sorry, B! All of this happened because you're my best friend! I bet you're wishing we'd never met." She was in tears by the time she finished.

"Hush," Blair said. She scooted across the bed to Serena and wrapped her arms around her tightly. "You're my _best_ friend, S, my sister. I wouldn't have it any other way."

Serena didn't know what else to say, so she collapsed against Blair's shoulder, trying to find her composure, but she couldn't. She'd been trying to stay strong all weekend, but everything was just falling onto her now in this crush of emotions that wouldn't quit.

"I don't know what to do, B," Serena said between sobs. "I just… I don't know. And I feel so bad! I've done so many horrible things to you, and now this happens!"

"I've done and said some pretty horrible things to you, too," Blair whispered with a grimace.

"But what I did was far worse," Serena said, hiccupping. "You had every right to be horrible to me."

"Hush, S," Blair implored, hugging Serena close. "It's okay to cry. I think you need it. And I'm right here, like always."

Serena did as Blair said, succumbing to her tears. Thoughts were running through her head though, all the guilty thoughts that had plagued her since this first started happening. All she kept thinking was that Blair would be better off without her.

And then it hit her.

Her sobs stopped abruptly and she pulled away, making eye contact with Blair.

"What? What is it?" Blair asked.

"I know what we have to do."

* * *

"Sarah, hi!" Jenny exclaimed into her cell phone. "It's so good to hear from you!"

"Jenny, likewise," Georgina said, smiling. "It's so great when you really hit it off with someone, ya know? And, like, we almost never met! Can you imagine?"

"I'm sure we would have met eventually," Jenny said, wondering why Sarah was all of a sudden sounding kind of… valley-girl-like? "Dan always introduces me to his friends."

"He's such a cutie, isn't he?" Georgina gushed like a fan girl.

"Uh, _no_," Jenny said, disgusted. She wondered if this girl liked her brother. It was too weird! It was like, junior year hit and all of a sudden her brother was an Adonis? Vanessa had a thing for him; he scored with his dream girl, Serena; and now there was this new girl. Dan wasn't even that hot. Well, speaking from a sisterly point of view, because anything else was just _ew_.

"Speaking of cuties," Georgina laughed. "You never got the chance to tell me more about this guy you're seeing, Asher, was it?"

"Oh, well, it's all very new. We met a little over a week ago," Jenny gushed, eager to talk about her new boyfriend. Well, they were seeing each other and had only gone on a few dates, so maybe calling him a _boyfriend_ was a bit premature… but she was fifteen, she still _was_ immature!

"And…?"

Jenny felt a little weird talking about Asher with a girl she'd just met, but in a way it was kind of cool. It would have been easier to talk to Vanessa about it, but V was too busy with Dan or Nate lately, she didn't have too much time for her best friend's little sister anymore. She wasn't sure how to speak to the rest of her friends about Asher either. She constantly had to watch what she said because they came from such completely different worlds. Sarah was different from those other girls though because she wasn't from a rich or well-to-do family. She was just like Jenny, well minus the elite education.

So, she decided to spill like a broken dam.

"He's _so_ amazing!" Jenny almost squealed. "He's from the Upper West Side and goes to Unity. He's on the lacrosse team. He's smart, he's funny; he owns a lot of dogs!"

Georgina laughed, "And? Why do you like him so much?"

Besides the fact that he was a well-to-do guy who was her ticket into the world she wanted into desperately? "He's very considerate of my feelings. And he's so sweet. I had to cancel plans with him because of my father, and then he just _shows_ up at the loft and _completely_ charms my Dad."

"Really?" Georgina asked.

"Yes," Jenny did squeal this time. "It didn't even faze him, you know? Spending the afternoon with me _and_ my father. And there was a _ton _of hot dogs leftover."

"Hot dogs?" Georgina raised an eyebrow, resisting the urge to roll her eyes.

"Oh, well, we met a week ago when his dogs ran into me and I had just bought one for lunch from a street vendor, but dropped it because of them," Jenny explained quickly.

Georgina tried to follow that sentence, but decided she just really didn't care. "So, are you just _seeing_ him, or is this more than that?"

"Well…" Jenny felt herself blushing even though no one could possibly see her right now.

"Yes?" Georgina prodded.

"I wouldn't officially call him my boyfriend yet, I mean, I don't know if I _should_ call him that, you know? We haven't really talked about it, but I mean, I'm sure we're only seeing each other, not anyone else," Jenny paused for air, feeling as though she was rambling. Scratch that, she _was_ rambling.

"Well, do you _want_ to be his girlfriend?" Georgina asked.

"Well… yeah," Jenny shrugged.

"Then have at it, honey," Georgina instructed. "Tell him what you want. Make it official."

"Oh, but what if…" Jenny trailed off softly, suddenly feeling nervous at the idea.

"Why so serious?" Georgina asked. "You strike me as the type of girl who knows what she wants and goes after it, am I right?"

"Well, yeah," Jenny said, suddenly feeling more confident. "I'm going to do it."

"And then, you know, like, make it official," Georgina said.

"Official?" Jenny asked, confused. "Official, how? I mean, as long as he agrees then I guess it will be official. We will _officially_ be boyfriend and girlfriend." Did she have to spell it out for the girl?

"Well, there are other ways to make things… official," Georgina said, smirking.

"Oh… you mean… but I," Jenny stuttered. It was far too soon to have sex with Asher. Definitely too soon… right?

"Wait, what do you think I mean?" Georgina asked, feigning confusion.

"Well…" Jenny felt herself flush a little. "Sex." She wanted to smack herself in the forehead. She needed to stop getting embarrassed when she talked about that.

"Oh, Jenny, don't be silly," Georgina said, laughing. "Sex doesn't make anything official. Unless you plan on telling _every_one."

"_Definitely_ not," Jenny denied. She'd be too afraid that information would get back to her brother. Now _there_ was a conversation she never wanted to have.

"And even if you did tell everyone, sex is just sex, though _very_ enjoyable," Georgina gave a mischievous edge to her voice. "And you might have to, you know, eventually, if you want to hold on to what's yours…"

Jenny felt flustered. She didn't believe that she would have to have sex just to keep Asher; _Blair_ didn't have to have sex with Nate just to keep Nate, so why did Jenny have to give in? Of course… Blair didn't keep Nate, did she? Jenny felt a little anxious at the idea that her plans to defeat Blair and come out on top might be obliterated. But she couldn't have sex with Asher, could she?

"I mean, it depends how important he is to you, I guess," Georgina said after pausing for a moment. She smirked to herself because Jenny wasn't saying anything now, which meant she must be thinking hard. _Ah, freshmen,_ she thought. _They are so naïve._

"How far you're willing to go…" Georgina continued softly, hoping the words would seep into the little blonde's skull.

Jenny shook herself out of her musings. All this talk was just crazy, and how _had_ they gotten on this topic? And why was she even talking about this with someone she just met?

"Okay, so if that's not what you meant by official, then what?" Jenny said, backpedaling and rolling her eyes. She was more than a little annoyed with herself and with Sarah and with this entire conversation.

"If you're official, then everyone needs to know about it, right?" Georgina asked. "I mean, that way everyone will know Asher's off the market, yes?"

And it would make Jenny look so much better with the girls if everyone knew things _officially_. "I guess," Jenny agreed. She had never had a boyfriend before, so she wasn't at all sure about things like this. "But what should I do?"

"Oh, I'm sure you'll figure something out," Georgina answered. "What's the best way to spread word?"

"Gossip Girl," Jenny said immediately.

"What?" Georgina asked, feigning ignorance because, really, how could she possibly know about GG? Sarah didn't grow up in the Upper East Side or go to high school there.

"Oh, never mind," Jenny said quickly. She kept forgetting that not everyone knew who Gossip Girl was. "It's just like a mailing list… er…" Sometimes she got as tongue tied as Dan, _jeez_.

"But nothing says _official_ like seeing the real thing in person, does it?" Georgina asked.

Jenny thought for a minute. "I think I like the way your mind works."

Besides, she'd already decided it was time to fight Blair back to make sure she stayed away. She was worried. Blair had already won over Isabel and Nelly, and Hazel and Penelope were speaking to her again. Jenny's grasp at the top was becoming tenuous. She'd decided that very day to use Gossip Girl for her own gain anyway. If all went well, she'd be using Gossip Girl to swat B away while using Asher to gain recognition as B's replacement… _officially_.

"So, what are you going to do?" Georgina asked slyly.

"Simple," Jenny said. "Everyone likes a party."

"Perfect!" Georgina exclaimed in agreement.

"I just have to talk to Asher first," Jenny said, realizing that the entire plan depended on Asher agreeing to make things official with her. She started shifting uncomfortably. What if she had to have sex with him in order for him to agree?

"Well, what are you waiting for? Get on it," Georgina encouraged.

"I'll talk to him tomorrow," Jenny said.

"Sounds like a plan," Georgina said, smirking to her self.

"Thanks for… everything, S," Jenny said before realizing how weird it sounded to call her that. 'S' was supposed to be Serena.

"If you ever need anything else, just call me," Georgina insisted.

"I will, and… _thank you_," Jenny said again. While she was growing very anxious about the plans as far as Asher was concerned, she was also feeling very confident that things _would_ go her way. Everything Sarah had said would be extremely helpful in combating Blair. She really _was_ grateful to the girl, and no longer annoyed.

"What are friends for?" Georgina said ironically before hanging up.

She smiled to herself, hearing Jenny's appreciation in her head again. _"S..."_

_My, but that has a nice ring to it…_

She closed her phone with a snap.

"Gotcha," she smirked to herself.

* * *

**SPOTTED: B at a biker bar in Brooklyn. Jeez, B, we knew you had a thing for bad boys, but we didn't think you liked them **_**that**_** bad. Tattoos and Hepatitis anyone? **

* * *

"What the hell?" Blair looked at her phone in utter disgust and annoyance.

"Wow, B," Penelope murmured from her seat on the steps of the Met. "That's just… wow."

It was Tuesday morning and it was cold, but it was a bright and beautiful day on the Upper East Side.

Disgust was evident on all the girls' faces except for Nelly Yuki because she was still trying to get the gist of this weird world that she'd somehow managed to be invited into.

"Like I would _ever_," Blair denied, rolling her eyes. "When was I supposed to be at this roach infested dirt trap? This morning when I was picking up croissants with Is? Or how about last night when I was with Serena?"

Everyone looked to Serena for confirmation. Serena was shaking her head at the post. "This is ridiculous. Who would have said something like that? No one can possibly believe it."

"Well, S, _you_ have been known to go a little wild, maybe you took B along for the ride," Hazel suggested smugly.

Serena glared at her and Hazel immediately became all apologetic. While Blair may be the one to watch if crossed, no one wanted to cross Serena because she was just incredibly sweet and made everyone around her shine that much brighter too. If someone got on Serena's bad side, it wouldn't make that person too popular at all.

"Kidding, S," Hazel stuttered. "I'm kidding."

"Of course you were, _Hazel_," Serena said, eyes flashing. She knew that calling the silly girl by her full name instead of 'H' would go a long way to telling the girl off. She didn't appreciate being reminded of her past and the insinuation that she was still that way. She had changed and everyone _damn_ well knew it.

"Someone must have read their tea leaves wrong this morning," Blair dismissed the conversation, pretending indifferent amusement. "Gossip Girl _is_ occasionally wrong."

"Except when she's not," Serena said pointedly, seeing a way to finally carry out the plan she'd concocted last night.

Blair paused for a moment, caught a little off guard that Serena wanted to do this so soon. She almost didn't want to go ahead with it. But she knew Serena was right. If they were going to get out of this Georgina situation in tact, they needed to change the tide a little.

"What are you insinuating?" Blair snapped. "That I snuck out after you left my house to go to that place?"

Everyone who was already a little flustered over Serena's reaction to Hazel's words, flinched at Blair's.

"I don't know," Serena said. "Maybe." She flipped her hair exaggeratedly.

"Oh, please, don't even think about going there," Blair said, disgusted. "If anyone would be doing something so stupid as going to a biker bar, it would definitely be _you_. And you had to snap at poor Hazel, when you know she was only speaking the truth."

"That was in the past, and you know it!" Serena exclaimed. Dread filled her at what she knew was coming, but she'd seen it as the only way.

"Oh, like so many other things are _in the past_?" Blair said mysteriously.

The other girls watched the exchange attentively; their eyes wide as they realized the two girls had gone into no-holds-bard mode. What was about to be revealed? They were too excited to interrupt the argument. Nelly was about to try to interfere and soothe some feathers but Penelope shot her a glare at her movement.

"Exactly, B," Serena said. "The past is over and done with. Things are different now."

"_Right_," Blair said. She sucked in a breath. _Oh God, she was really going to say it._ "Yeah, they're definitely different now because I'm no longer seeing Nate, so you hooking up with him wouldn't be cheating anymore, now _would_ it."

Serena smiled and flinched on the inside at the same time. On the one hand, she was proud of Blair for following through her plan, but on the other… maybe they should have talked things through with Nate first…

The girls' mouths dropped open in utter shock. They'd read the little side comments on Gossip Girl back at the beginning of the year when she commented that she thought Nate had always had a thing for Serena, but they'd never known that to be true… or reciprocated.

"B, that's not fair," Serena said softly, glancing at the girls and not having to fake the flush of embarrassment overcoming her features. She knew what she was getting into when she decided to do this, but it was still mortifying to have one of their best kept secrets aired out.

"That was _in the past_," Serena almost whispered. She made sure to be loud enough that the girls could still hear but make them think she didn't want them _to_ hear. "I'm with_ Dan_ now. I _love_ Dan."

"And how long will that last?" Blair asked sarcastically. "We all know who you are Serena. A leopard doesn't change its spots and neither does a skank!"

"B, I thought we were past all that," Serena said with another sly embarrassed look at the girls. "I thought we had moved on."

"Well maybe _you_ have moved on from the past into _greener_ pastures," Blair said, rolling her eyes. "But I can't, not when your silly little _friends_ from the past show up and decide to make _my_ life hell because of _you_."

"B, I'm sorry about that," Serena shifted. This was the most important part. Without this mention, Georgina might think they had staged this argument for her benefit. But if they worked this out properly, it would look like reality, not pretend. "I tried to stop her."

"Well you didn't try hard enough, Serena!" Blair almost shouted in anger. "You know what? You're not worth this! Being friends with you only ends up hurting me! And I've tried to be your friend no matter what, but you know what? I'm done!"

"No, you're not, because _I_ am," Serena snapped back just as angrily. "You think its easy being _your_ friend? You're a bitch and never let anything go! It's like walking on egg shells because I never know what mood you're going to be in! And you know what? _I've_ had enough of you, too!"

Serena grabbed her bag and stood up, preparing to stalk off.

"What? Can't take the heat? Going to run away from your problems again?" Blair said snarkily. "That _is_ what you do best right? Run off to boarding school instead of facing the reality? Run,_ Serena_, run away, like the bad little biker bar trash you are!"

Serena turned around and glared at her.

Blair smirked and gave an exaggerated eyebrow arch as if to say 'you have something else to say to me?'

"I hate you," Serena said, making her voice drip with as much anger and hatred as possible.

"Likewise," Blair said, knowing she should have said something better and something more hate-filled, but she didn't hate Serena and this fight had been one of the hardest things she'd ever done. She just _couldn't_ say the word to her, especially not after Serena had sacrificed everything she'd worked so hard to rebuild by staging this argument to protect her.

The two best friends glared at each other with the most disgust and hate they could put into their faces before Serena scoffed to the girls, "Later girls, I'm not feeling very welcome right now."

She turned to leave again.

"Ironic, because you aren't," Penelope snarked.

Serena froze and turned around. She hadn't been expecting them to pipe in too.

"Excuse me?" Serena said, turning to glare at the girl.

"Welcome. Here," Penelope said with disgust on her face. "Not anymore." She was filled with so much jealousy at the news of Serena and Nate having an affair, she couldn't see straight. The guy still hadn't called her. Maybe it was because of this little skank. If that was the case, she'd have to take extra steps to make Serena appear as unattractive as possible to Nate. Gossip Girl was _so_ getting this scoop from her.

Serena looked at the other girls' faces and noted that Hazel and Isabel were in absolute agreement with Penelope. And Nelly, who looked more confused than not, was following the other girls' lead.

She saw the small look on Blair's face before she covered it up—the look of regret. Neither she nor Blair had figured on the other girls having Blair's back; everyone was still on pretty shaky ground since her humiliation.

Serena saw that look and knew that she'd done the right thing. If they hadn't done this, the blow to Blair's reputation would have been so much worse than before, and worse than what was sure to follow Serena around now. It was good that she had followed through on this plan as soon as possible; otherwise Blair might have changed her mind.

Serena slowly nodded. "Understood."

Then she finally left, crossing the street to the school. She felt incredibly alone but also incredibly relieved. A weight was lifted from her shoulders. She'd managed to turn this all around, to shift the focus of Georgina's rampage. Now she could relax a little knowing that Blair would be okay…

As long as Georgina believed it…

* * *

Jenny and Elise were running a little late.

Jenny knew the girls wouldn't chew them out about it, not when they arrived in the lap of luxury—Asher's limo.

She wished she could have been there when Gossip Girl's post had hit the public, but she'd been on her way to meet Elise when Asher called asking if he could give her a ride to school. She hadn't been able to resist, and since she was almost to Elise's, she dragged her new freshman friend along.

When the limo finally pulled up, all she saw was Serena making her way across the street and all the girls sitting on the steps—Blair included, unfortunately.

Jenny sighed, but didn't let it get to her.

When the vehicle stopped, Asher got out and assisted Elise before turning to help Jenny.

Jenny smiled and took his hand, letting him pull her up. She grabbed her bag off the seat and was about to say her goodbyes when he reached up and brushed a lock of her hair behind her ear.

She looked at him, a little startled at the gesture, but still smiled even wider, if that were possible.

He leaned forward and traced a gentle kiss across her lips.

She froze, feeling knots in her stomach as all the air went to her head. _Her first kiss!_

And it was amazing. His lips were so gentle and warm, and she started to feel slightly light headed. When he pulled back, she just continued to stare at him, thoroughly bemused. She wanted to do it again.

She realized she might have been staring a little too long, so she adjusted her strap on her shoulder and said, "Call me," before she started to walk away. Then she turned back and reached up behind his neck and pulled him down again for that second kiss she _really_ wanted. He went willingly.

_Now _this_ was a kiss_, she thought to herself as his mouth met hers more fully.

She finally came up for air a few moments later and caught her breath—which had somehow managed to leave her in the space of those few moments. She smiled at him, and he smiled at her. "Bye, Jenny," he whispered.

"Bye, Asher" she sighed. She walked away in a daze, still looking back at him as he got back into the limo and shut the door. She sighed dreamily as he pulled off.

"Wow, Jenny," Elise said. "That was just… _wow_."

"Tell me about it," Jenny murmured.

Then she snapped back to attention and looked toward the girls who had all seen her entrance. _Well, if that doesn't make it official_, she thought to herself, _she didn't know what would._

She saw Blair again, and, with renewed confidence, she made her way to the stairs.

"Morning girls!" Jenny announced. "Sorry we're late, but Asher offered to give us a ride and we just _couldn't_ say no!"

"Asher Hornesby, right?" Penelope said, crinkling her eyes in thought. "From the Unity lacrosse team?"

"The very one," Jenny almost giggled.

"_Nice_, little J," Hazel said.

"So, did we miss anything?" Jenny gushed as she took a seat on the stairs as far away from Blair as possible. "Like maybe the motorcycle gang that blew in to drop Blair off?"

Blair glared at her.

Jenny smirked with amusement.

"Oh, that was _so_ not true," Isabel brushed off the comment.

"Really?" Jenny said, still amused but wondering how Blair had managed to deflect the rumor so quickly.

"Really," Hazel said. "But you _did_ miss something. Something _huge!_"

"Girls," Blair interjected. "I'm sure these two don't need all the gory details just now. They'll probably be on Gossip Girl later anyway. Plus, it _is_ time for class." Blair looked at the two freshmen with disdain. "If you wanted to join us, you would have been on time."

Jenny opened her mouth to give a sarcastic reply but stopped when Blair stood up to leave and the rest of the girls followed suit.

_What happened?_ Jenny thought, completely confused. How had her being late _one_ morning get all the girls to follow Blair again like sheep?

She hurried to catch up; even Elise had scampered off to follow the rest of the girls as soon as they rose.

"I still wonder where that rumor came from," Isabel said. "Why would anyone say that about you, Blair?"

"Jealousy?" Blair shrugged. "Maybe someone wanted to cause some trouble?"

"Now, who would want to do something like that?" Jenny said knowingly, before flashing Blair a victorious grin.

"Someone who likes to dish it but probably can't handle it back," Blair said, smirking at Jenny. Now she knew where the rumor came from. Apparently little J wanted to play. Blair couldn't wait to dive into this battle. She might even be able to use it to get her mind off of the other more serious things plaguing her. She wondered for a moment if this was Georgina's doing, but decided it wasn't really the psycho's style.

"Well, whoever it was, we've got your back, B," Hazel said confidently, completely ignoring the fact that she'd been eager to dethrone Blair not too long ago.

"I know," Blair said before flashing Jenny a grin. She turned and continued across the street, confident that her entourage was following close behind.

Jenny almost stumbled at the words. She had turned her back for a second and was on the verge of losing everything again. She was going to have to do something to cement her place, but what?

Flashes of the kiss with Asher raced through her mind. Maybe she _could_ sleep with him after all. She really did lo—_like_ him. Wait, did she love him? He did make her flustered in a good way, and that kiss had definitely made her heart start to flutter.

She hadn't had the opportunity to talk to him yet about making things official, but that _very_ public kiss this morning told her that he was probably on the same page as her. She'd go to see him tonight and approach him about a party. They'd have to do it at his place, of course… and her father probably wouldn't let her go. She'd just make up something. Yes, she could do this.

And if sleeping with Asher got her the crown along with a king, Blair's reign would be a thing of the past.

_Right?_

* * *

_To be continued…_


	11. Chapter 11

**REMINDER: **This story takes place after Desperately Seeking Serena (SAT eppy!). Hence, no video has been delivered to Serena. The sex tape does not exist thus far in the world I'm writing in. Doesn't mean I couldn't add one, but for now, it's not there.

* * *

**Chapter Eleven**

* * *

**SPOTTED: Show down on the steps of the Met. B and S as BFFs? No more. Word is that S and N carried on behind B's back. B forgave her like a good BFF might, but something else from S's past has shown up to give B problems too. Apparently, B's had it and wants no more. B and S's love fest has become a hate filled extravaganza. And the rest of Constance's royal court has backed their former Queen. Do we spy a return to power on the horizon? **

**But what about little J? She was spotted stepping out of a shiny new carriage. Is our little J being courted? And if so, by whom? We all know that a Queen needs a King to rule their subjects. Is little J going to give B a run for her crown? And just who **_**is**_** this new love interest? **

**Never fear, I shall return soon with all the deets. When there's a will, there's a way. You know you love me, XOXO Gossip Girl.**

* * *

"Care to explain?" Chuck said, waving his phone at her.

Serena sighed. She'd just gotten home after managing to get through a day of glares and stares. She'd managed to avoid Nate entirely although that wouldn't last long considering that the four of them were supposed to be working together against Georgina. Of course, now she couldn't be seen in public with Blair because that would tip Georgie off for sure.

"Not really," Serena said sarcastically. She should have known Chuck would show up and demand answers immediately. She and Blair had made the decision to go through with this without consulting Nate _or_ Chuck first. They knew the boys, especially Chuck, weren't going to like it, but it needed to be done.

They were interrupted when Serena's phone rang.

She held up her hand, "Just a sec."

Chuck sighed in exasperation. He wanted answers _now_.

"Hey," Serena said softly in greeting.

"I'm _so_ sorry, S!" Blair said. "I didn't mean a word I said, you know that right? I love you, love you, love you! I didn't know the girls would act that way! I don't know _how_ to fix this, but we will, okay? I'm right here for you. I promise!"

"B, it's okay," Serena said softly, trying to soothe Blair. "You couldn't have known how the girls would react. But we did it. We got what we wanted. Georgina should be calling me sometime this evening. We'll know for sure then if it worked."

Chuck raised his brows, the questioning look on his face disappeared into a smirk and he shook his head in amusement.

"And I know you didn't mean any of it, silly," Serena gave a small laugh. "I didn't mean anything I said either. That was the plan. Just relax. I love you too, B."

"I can't believe how well that went," Blair said, finally letting out a deep breath of relief.

"Well, we've had a lot of practice," Serena said with a small laugh.

"True," Blair laughed. "I don't know what to do now. I miss you already and it's only been six hours!"

"I'll be a phone call away, B," Serena promised. "Don't worry. And the thing with the girls? We'll worry about that later, after we've dealt with Georgina. I can deal with _that_, I've done it before. Let's just worry about one thing at a time, okay?"

"Right," Blair said, though she was still feeling a lot of guilt about doing this to Serena.

Chuck cleared his throat impatiently.

Serena rolled her eyes, "Look, B, I have an unwanted visitor at the moment. Let me handle this and I'll call you back."

They hung up and Serena collapsed on the couch.

"So," Chuck said slowly. "You two _staged_ that?"

"Uh huh," Serena nodded.

"It's all I've heard about all day," Chuck shook his head. "It must've been _some_ fight."

"It was," Serena murmured.

"Did Nate know about this?" he asked.

"Nu uh," Serena shook her head.

"Well, that's something considering I thought we were supposed to be a _team_ on this," Chuck said sarcastically. Though he was glad Nate didn't know because at least Chuck wasn't the only one left out.

"We _are_ a team," Serena insisted. "We just… decided to do it."

"Uh, huh, sure," Chuck said, shaking his head. "And what were you hoping to achieve?"

"For her to leave Blair alone," Serena said.

"Did it work?"

"I won't know until she calls," Serena mumbled.

"Well, in that case, I hope it did work," Chuck said. "Otherwise this all would have been for nothing."

"I know that, Chuck," Serena almost whined, annoyed. "Just do your job and this will all be over."

"Don't you think this is all a little extreme?" he asked. "So Blair will be known to experiment a little with the fairer sex, but that can't be worse than what you just did to yourself."

"Look," Serena snapped, drawing herself up. "She's already been through enough thanks to _you_. I'm not letting her get hurt again because of _me_."

"Point taken," he murmured.

"I just hope you know what you're doing," he shook his head. "As to the other, I've got nothing that will be of any real use."

"No outstanding warrant for her arrest in Balfour that we could use to get her shipped out of the country?" Serena replied sarcastically. "I thought better of you."

Chuck glared at her for a moment, not appreciating her uncharacteristic wit.

"Plan B. I need to follow her," he finally ground out. "Find out where she's staying and get inside. Find a way to delete all traces of any pictures she has from that night."

Serena sat up quickly, her back ramrod straight as she realized the problem with that statement. "And… how are you going to do that? I thought she was staying at The Palace." That's where she'd gone for her initial confrontation.

"She's been staying some place else now. Call Dan," he said simply. "Get him to set up a get together with our little stalker. I need to follow her home."

"I'm going with you," she insisted. She _had_ to go with him. If he managed to get inside and find the real pictures… _shit_.

"Suit your self," he shrugged. "We need to follow her _tonight_."

"I guess Dan can do that," she said slowly, knowing Dan's reluctance to have anything to do with her.

"He's gonna have to," Chuck said firmly. "I leave tomorrow night."

"Crap, that's right," Serena sighed. "How are we supposed to do this without you?"

"Ah, so you actually admit that you need me," he said, smirking.

"Now is not the time," she snapped. Leave it to Chuck to make some sort of innuendo right now, _the jerk!_

"We follow her tonight and then he'll have to plan something again tomorrow so we can make sure she's gone when we get there," he finished explaining the plan.

"And how do you suppose we get in? If we break down the door or a window, she's gonna know what we did and if she's out with Dan, she'll know that he's on to her," Serena sighed in frustration.

"_Sis_," he said with a condescending smirk. "Money talks."

"Great, so we're going to bribe our way in?" Serena said.

He nodded.

She was silent for a moment, contemplating.

"We're going to have to make sure whoever it is won't talk anyway," she thought out loud. "And what if she has a backup copy of the photos or something? And…" she slapped her forehead. "Her cell phone! It has the originals. How are we supposed to get that? Chuck, this is never going to work!"

"Relax," he said. "We'll figure it out."

"What? You gonna have Dan borrow her phone and swap out the sim card or something? She'll definitely be tipped off then, and we can't guarantee all the pictures are gone then either!" Serena mouthed off, not seeing how any of this would actually work.

"Not a bad idea," he said with some admiration. Maybe he'd seriously underestimated Serena.

"Ugh!" she threw up her hands when she realized she'd only gotten things more convoluted.

"Just _relax_," Chuck said, eyes staring at her curiously. "Have him swap out the card, then drop the phone in the toilet or something."

"Because that won't in anyway be suspicious," she said. "Dan does _not_ need her as an enemy."

"Well, who else is going to get the phone?" Chuck inquired.

Serena had a thought and she started to mention it before she shook her head and looked down.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing," she murmured.

"You had a thought, come on, spill," Chuck said.

"Well… Dan said that Georgina sort of was talking to Jenny…" she trailed off.

"Talking to her? About what?" he asked.

"You know, making friends or whatever," she explained. "But we can't ask Jenny to help. She'd want to know what Georgina has on Blair and I'm not sure whose hands that information would be more dangerous in."

"So don't tell her," he said simply. "Don't involve Blair at all. Jenny thinks you two aren't friends now… because of some person making trouble for her…"

Serena's eyes widened with realization.

"Now you're getting it," he remarked, pleased.

"Appeal to the _love_," he said the word with disgust, "she has for her brother. Tell Jenny that Georgina's playing Dan but you can't do anything about it because…" he trailed off in thought.

She shook her head. "This isn't going to work. That's too many lies. Plus, Dan doesn't want Jenny to have anything to do with Georgina."

"…she has a snuff video of you and she'll use it," he finished with a satisfied smirk, not even acknowledging her words.

"What?" she exclaimed.

"Jenny hates Blair, not you," he said. "If she thinks that this girl is hurting you or her brother, she's going to want to help. Tell her the truth about what happened last year. Tell her Georgina made a tape. Tell her that you're going to find the tape and erase it, but mention that Georgina has a part of the video streamed onto her phone that she sent to you, which is why you need to get rid of the phone."

"Chuck, that's crazy!" she said.

"Crazy enough to work," he finished.

"So, let me get this straight," she said slowly, thinking about everything they'd just discussed. "Dan's gonna meet her tonight. We will follow her home. I'm going to tell Jenny this huge story to get her on our side. _Jenny's_ going to hang with her tomorrow night while we break into Georgina's place, meanwhile _Jenny_ is going to take care of Georgina's cell phone… and we're going to do all this without getting caught, and without tipping Georgina off about anything until she gets home?"

"That pretty much sums it up," he said, analyzing every angle.

"So what happens if Dan can't meet with her tonight or Jenny won't help? Or Jenny can't meet with her? Or if the landlord can't be bought? Or if the _photos aren't even there!_" she ended with a shriek.

"You really need to get laid," he deadpanned. "You're too high strung. Tell Dan he should work on that."

"Ah!" she picked up a couch pillow and threw it at him.

"My point exactly," he laughed, catching the harmless projectile.

"Leave my sex life out of this," she snapped. "And this is _never_ going to work!"

"Yes, it will," he reaffirmed.

"Fine, I just need to run this by _Blair_ first," she finally said. "If she thinks it will work, we'll do it. If not, you're going to need a plan C, _C_."

He rolled his eyes but just shrugged. If Blair wanted the pictures destroyed, she would agree. He didn't see any other way himself.

"Meanwhile, you're going to have to deal with Nate," he reminded her.

"Gah! Can't you do that for me?" Serena moaned. "I've had too much crap to deal with today."

"Well, I could," Chuck rolled his eyes once again. "Except he's still not talking to me."

"Can't you just work it out or something?" she moaned. "Go and apologize. Beg. Cry a little. Throw yourself at his feet. That worked for me."

He stared at her like she had two heads.

"Don't look at me like that!" she snapped. "You messed it up, now you fix it."

"Because Blair had _nothing_ to do with it?" he asked sarcastically.

"This isn't about Blair and Nate, this is about _you_ and Nate," she said.

"Yeah, well, that's not going to be _fixed_ any time soon," he said.

"I guess I'll call him," she finally sighed. "I'm just glad I didn't run into him today… which was weird. I thought for sure he'd want to know what happened as soon as Gossip Girl posted it."

He shrugged. "He wasn't in school today."

"Why not?"

"I'm not privy to that information anymore," he gave her a pointed look.

"Riiight," she drawled out.

"You can leave now," she dismissed him before leaning back against the couch and twiddling her phone in her hands, waiting for the call she'd been waiting for since her fight with Blair.

"Maybe I should call her…" she thought out loud.

"Word of advice?" he said.

"Hmm?" she muttered.

"Don't call her, and when Georgina calls, don't answer it," he said.

"But… I need to," she said, confused.

"If you call her _now_, she's going to know it was staged," he explained. "If you were going to call, you should have done it _right_ after the fight so you could yell at her while you were still _supposedly_ angry. Now would just be silly. And if she calls and you answer, she's going to be suspicious too. If you don't answer, she's going to think you're mad at her, which will make the fight seem that much more real."

"How do you know all this?" she asked, perplexed.

"Because it's what I'd think," he said with a shrug. "Call Dan and get him to set things up, then call me with the time and place."

"Fine," she said. She watched him leave, pondering the songs she was going to download on her ipod for tonight's stakeout. Anything to not have to listen to Chuck's 'witty banter' for hours.

"Chuck!" she called out.

He turned, arching an eyebrow.

"…thank you," she managed to say.

He looked momentarily surprised before shrugging, "You're family."

Then he left her with her mouth dropped open in complete shock.

Serena knew that Chuck had been taking this family thing kind of strangely seriously, but deep down she never thought he really got the idea of what family was.

She'd never been more glad to be so wrong.

* * *

"Listen Nate, it was all staged, and I'm sorry we didn't tell you about it before we did it, but we just decided at the last minute and I'm _so_ sorry," Serena apologized quickly, hoping that he wouldn't be too ticked.

"Whoa, Serena, slow down," Nate said. "What are you talking about?"

"… haven't you… where have you been all day? Why weren't you in school? And don't you ever read your messages?" she asked, thoroughly confused. Great, now she was going to have to tell him what they did. She _really_ didn't want to have this conversation.

"My dad came home today, I was with him all day," he explained.

"Really?" she felt a pang of guilt that he was going to have to deal with more drama on top of his already massive drama-load. "How is he? How is your mother? How are _you_?"

"I'm fine, Serena," he laughed. "He's fine. Mom went to the Hampton's early to open the house. Oh, and she's not going to make the wedding, so it'll just be me and Dad… and Vanessa, if that's okay? She can take my mom's place."

"Uh, sure, that's fine…" Serena said softly, reading between the lines. All was not okay with the Archibalds, not if Anne had left the city on the day Howard returned home. Especially not if Anne was willing to miss the wedding of the century too.

And now she had to tell Nate what happened… _crap._

"So, what were you talking about? What messages?" he asked. "How's everything going? Do you need my help?"

"Well, see, Blair and I, well, we sort of had this fight," she tried to explain. "And it was all staged for Georgina so that she would leave Blair alone, but um…"

"Yes?"

"We needed to make sure she believed it, so we decided to spill a little secret we had…" she said. "And now Gossip Girl and the whole school know about us."

"About what?" he asked. "The pictures came out or something?"

"No, Nate," Serena sighed. "Us as in you and me. As in the Shepherd Wedding."

"Oh…"

"Nate, I'm sorry! And it was _completely_ my idea, Blair didn't even want to do it, but I made her and I'm sorry we didn't tell you and—"

"Serena!" he called over her rambling apology. "Serena! It's alright, I'm not mad."

"You're… not?" Serena said, surprised and hopeful.

"I said I would help anyway I could," he explained. "With the stuff with dad, I can't do much. But fending off a rumor from Gossip Girl? Not even a blip on my radar."

"Well, good, I mean… you know what I mean," Serena almost laughed, which she realized was something she hadn't been doing a lot of lately.

"Just do your thing," Nate shrugged through the phone. "I don't think it's possible to make things worse for me, so have at it. And… tell Blair… tell Blair… well, just so _you_ know, if you need my help for anything else, call me."

"I will, Nate," Serena said with a soft smile. He'd been about to say that he would do anything to help Blair too! It might be possible for Nate and Blair to at least become friends again! She hoped she managed to keep hope out of her voice.

"I probably won't be in school for the rest of the week either," he said. "But I'll be sure to keep my phone available, and I'll even read the Gossip Girl message, okay?"

"Okay," Serena said. "Take care, Nate. I hope everything works out with your dad."

"Yeah, me too."

* * *

"Absolutely not!"

"Are you sure?" Serena asked softly.

"S, today would have been for nothing then!" Blair exclaimed. "We could have just done this to begin with and not even bothered with the fight!"

"But we don't know what else she could have done to you before we did it," Serena explained. "And she still _does_ have the pictures. We need to get rid of them."

"I know that," Blair said. "But… _Jenny_? I don't want her anywhere _near_ those photos!"

"Blair, the fight just bought us some time," Serena said, wondering why she was defending Chuck's plan.

"Did it? Has she called?" Blair asked.

"Yes…" Serena trailed off.

"And what did she say? She believed it?" Blair asked.

"I don't know," Serena sighed. "I didn't answer."

"What? Why not?"

"Because Chuck told me not to," Serena winced.

Blair sputtered, "What?"

"He said she would be more likely to believe that it wasn't staged if I didn't answer… make her think I was really mad at her," she explained quickly.

"Well… he has a point," Blair finally obliged.

"So… you really don't want to try to destroy the pictures?" Serena said slowly.

"Of course, I do, but…" Blair sighed too. "_He_ can't see them either. How are you going to make sure he doesn't?"

"I don't know, I'll think of something…" Serena said. "We should at least find out where she's staying right?"

"I guess," Blair said.

"So, I'll call Dan and we'll follow her as planned," Serena said.

"But I still don't like involving Jenny," Blair argued. "And I still don't like the idea of Chuck being there."

"We'll figure out the rest, B," Serena said. She knew Dan wouldn't appreciate her involving Jenny either… she'd have to see if she could figure something else out for tomorrow. "I'll call Dan and set up tonight."

"I hope you and Chuck know what you're doing," Blair finally gave in.

"So do I."

* * *

"You will never make a good cop."

"Why? Because I'd rather listen to my music then listen to _your_ endless prattle?" Serena said sarcastically. "Besides, I never wanted to be a cop and sit through boring stake outs and dodge bullets and eat _donuts._"

"Aw, and here I was attempting to make it authentic," Chuck smirked.

Serena rolled her eyes. She still couldn't believe Chuck had brought gourmet _donuts_ along in the limo. She knew he had a warped sense of humor, but that was just silly.

"Just stay on _your_ side of the limo, and I'll stay on _my_ side," she snapped before putting her ear buds back in place.

"You know," he said loud enough for her to hear over the music, "we'd probably be less conspicuous in a town car or a cab."

She yanked the buds out of her ears. "Well, this was all _your_ idea. Shouldn't you have thought of that before now?" She hadn't even managed to get a half hour of quiet before he got bored and started with her.

He shrugged.

"I forgot about a nightstick too," he shook his head. "I must be slipping."

"As if you need to be wielding a nightstick!" she snapped before she realized how stupid that sentence was.

He smirked in amusement.

"Do _not_ comment on that!" she yelped.

"You make it too easy," he shrugged.

"Would you just _shut up!_" she yelled.

"But, sis, this is the perfect opportunity for us to bond," he said, feigning innocence.

"_Chuck!_" she hollered.

"Fine," he settled back into his seat and stared out the window toward the coffee house Dan had gotten Georgina to go to. _Poetry readings?_ How lame was that? He knew Georgina had to be getting bored by now. He wouldn't be surprised if she left sooner rather than later.

He looked at Serena who was effectively ignoring him again with her stupid ipod.

He shrugged. Well, he was bored, so….

Serena sniffed the air a minute later and turned to look at him in shock.

"What are you doing?"

He took a slow drag on the blunt and blew out the sweet smoke before looking at her.

"What does it look like?"

"Chuck! You are _not_ smoking pot right now!" she squealed.

"It would seem that I am," he smirked before taking another drag.

"What is _wrong_ with you!" she squeaked. She _would_ snatch it from him and throw it out the window if she wasn't so worried about the _real_ police seeing a lighted herbal projectile let loose out of _her_ hand.

"Nothing now," he lazily grinned.

She hit him hard in the arm. "Put that out!"

"Ow," he said, grabbing his arm. "Stay on your _side_, sis," he said, making fun of her earlier words.

"Well, keep your smoke on _your_ side!" she hollered.

"I could roll down the window," he suggested.

"No!" she smacked his hand that was reaching for the automatic window switch.

"Suit your self," he shrugged and relaxed again, attempting to ignore her.

"_Chuck!_"

"Do you mind?" he said. "I'm trying to get some peace and quiet here."

"Argh!" she exclaimed before relocating to the other end of the limo.

_Great,_ she thought. _Now she was getting baked with Chuck Bass._

Blair was right, this was a stupid idea.

* * *

_Tell me what can you want?  
You've got it all.  
_

She wished. She didn't have it all. Not even close.

_Things are real in a handshake.  
Rest my bones these days in a different way.  
Cherish the change; it may not stay.  
_

Change was never good. And resting bones… well, she'd rested with plenty of guys in _many_ different ways. But, it felt good being back in the Upper East Side; the only problem was that things _had_ changed far too much. She couldn't rest the way she used to, knowing that Serena wasn't her friend. And now, it looked like she never would be again.

Serena hadn't answered her phone call earlier, which meant that she was probably furious that she'd lost Blair because of Georgina.

Georgina had read the little blogger's update. She was suspicious at first, but the fact that Blair had revealed that little secret about Serena and Nate, well, that sort of told her that it was very real. Snow White would never want to be humiliated like that. She wouldn't want people to know that her best friend and boyfriend had played her for a fool.

And then there was the added fact that Serena hadn't answered when she called.

_I remember your dress,  
Like dreams when you wake with a sudden start.  
You're beside me in the dark,  
Wrapped in my arms.  
_

Oh, so that's how he was resting his bones _differently. _She shrugged. She could care less about his wet dreams. She looked at the scruffy dark haired guy on the stage. Yes, she really _could_ care less about _his_ wet dreams.

_Love is being entranced in a glance,  
To muster up courage when you're flustered,  
To stumble on the words you prepare.  
_

Everyone knew you couldn't define _love_, she thought with disgust. She'd given up on finding that elusive _thing_ years ago. Love didn't exist. It was like religion. People needed something to believe in, so they believed in love. When in reality, that was lust talking buddy-boy.

Georgina didn't believe in anything, except the friendship she had with Serena van der Woodsen. And even now that was gone.

People lived and people hurt and people died.

That was the only thing she'd learned in life. It was time for Serena to learn that hard lesson too. It was time for Serena to give up on stupid things like _love_.

_Don't worry about the money that went down the drain  
Because the best things in life are free._

Everyone in the coffee house started clapping as the guy left the stage. Georgina just stared back and forth between the stage and the crowd, especially Dan, unable to believe they were clapping at that mess.

The rest of the poem was intriguing and thought provoking, but the end was just campy. And people were clapping?

The host came up to announce a ten minute break and she saw this as her chance.

"You know, Dan, I'm not really feeling well tonight," she said. And she hadn't gotten any further with stupid Dan Humphrey either. She'd been pleased when he invited her out, until she realized it was a _poetry_ reading, _gag!_ She didn't know how in the world she was going to manipulate things with him to get him in bed—because, of course, that was the end game here.

It was pissing her off actually. He actually seemed to worship the ground Serena walked on. How could Georgina compete with that? Especially when he thought she had a boyfriend too? Maybe she was going to have to give 'Jack', her imaginary boyfriend, the boot…

"What's wrong?" he pretended concern. "Are you okay?"

"No…" she shook her head, deciding to go ahead with her idea. "Jack and I broke up."

"Oh, no, wow," he said. "I'm sorry."

"Yeah, well," she looked away as if she was upset. She really should have been an actress. "It had to end sometime… I just really thought… he was the one, you know?"

"I'm really sorry," he managed to say, not sure what else he was supposed to say. He knew from Serena that Georgina didn't really have a boyfriend, so obviously he was getting the tears and lies as part of some new plot. The pit of his stomach dropped. He didn't know how to handle bitchy manipulative females.

Sure, he could handle Blair, but he didn't have to pretend to like her—even though she wasn't that horrible. Plus, he was realizing that Georgina made Blair look like an angel.

"Could I just hang out with you someplace quiet? Go for a walk? Or to the park? Or back to your loft?" she said, stifling a mock sob.

"I really wish I could," he said apologetically. "But I promised Dad I would get home early. He's been working on that VH1 thing all week and he has an interview tomorrow that he wants me to help him prep for."

Well, that was a big whopper of a lie. He impressed himself with it. He just needed to get away from her and send her on her way. He didn't like Serena being stuck in a limo with Chuck for too long.

"That's too bad," she said morosely. _Damn it_, why wasn't this working?

"I'm really sorry," he said again, for lack of a better thing to say. "Want me to get you a cab? See you home?"

She shook her head tearfully. "No, I'll just walk. I'll be okay."

"Are you sure?" he cursed. Walking was going to make it more difficult for Serena and Chuck to follow her. "You don't know what kind of crazies might be out there just waiting in the shadows."

"The crazies don't bother me," she said. The crazies should be scared of _her_, she smirked to herself.

Dan managed a nod and followed her to the exit. Well, his job was done… but the following part; that was going to be difficult. Why couldn't she have just taken a cab home?

_Shit._

* * *

"Shit!"

"What?"

"She's walking," Chuck said, putting the butt out quickly. "Didn't you tell him to make sure she got a cab or something?"

"Well obviously she wanted to walk!" she complained. She went to the door and started to open it.

"What are you doing?" he grabbed the door handle before she could push it.

"Following her!"

"In that outfit and with _that_ hair?" he said, eyeing her blue dress and flyaway perfect blonde hair.

"What's wrong with my hair?" she said, startled.

"She'll recognize you in an instant if she looked over her shoulder," he slapped her hand away. "I'll go."

He opened the door and she grabbed his arm.

"What?" he said impatiently.

She grabbed his scarf and pulled it off. "_Now_ she won't recognize _you_."

"Be careful with that," he said, before leaving.

She tossed it away from her onto the seat.

_Ew_.

* * *

"What are you doing here?"

"I had to come and find out what's going on," Blair said. "I couldn't sit at home anymore."

"Well, I don't know what's going on," Serena sighed, tossing her bag and the box of donuts on the hall table. She was glad to be home.

"Right," Blair rolled her eyes.

"Chuck just scampered off after her when she left," Serena muttered. "He wouldn't let me follow her by foot because he didn't want her to recognize me. I haven't heard from him yet, and I'm too afraid to call him because I don't know if he remembered to turn his cell phone off, and he was high so he might have, and if I call him and he's near her, she might hear it."

Blair just stared at her for a full moment.

Then she couldn't help it. She started laughing.

"Blair!"

"He… he… he… went _walking_?" Blair collapsed on the couch. "Chuck Bass is _walking_ all over New York City?"

Serena started to smile too, seeing the hilarity in that.

"How… How…" Blair tried to catch her breath. "How long ago did he leave?"

"About an hour?" she said.

"And… he was _high_?" Blair started laughing again. "How high was he?"

"High enough to tell me to take care of his scarf?" she shrugged, holding the disgusting thing up.

Blair burst out laughing. She couldn't help it. It had been so long since she'd had a real laugh.

Serena threw the scarf at her. "_You_ take it."

"I don't want _that_," Blair squealed, throwing the thing right back at Serena. "He asked _you_ to protect it. So you must! Protect it with your _life!_" She dissolved into laughter again.

Serena held the thing away from her, dangling it by her thumb and pointer finger. "I really don't see the appeal."

"_Don't_ mock the scarf," a different voice mumbled.

Blair stopped laughing almost immediately when she saw none other than Chuck Bass himself standing in the entryway. She looked away and flicked an imaginary piece of lint off her skirt.

"So? Did you find out where she lives?" Serena asked impatiently, throwing his scarf at him.

Chuck took his most prized possession and wrapped it back around his neck, glancing in the mirror on the wall across the room to make sure it was _just so_.

"Mission accomplished."

* * *

_To be continued…_

**Poem:**

Untitled work by Ed Westwick


	12. Chapter 12

**Last Update: August 24, 2008**

**Today's Update: February 20, 2011.**

**Yes, 2 and a half years. But I'm updating now!**

* * *

**Chapter Twelve**

* * *

She took a deep breath.

She was lying on an unfamiliar bed staring at the dresser across the room. The room that she had been in for the last hour. The hour that had changed so many things. The things that were making her very uncomfortable.

She did it.

She slept with Asher.

And now all she wanted to do was take it back.

It wasn't that she didn't like him. Because he was her _official_ boyfriend so of course she liked him. But she wasn't ready for this. _God_, she was _not_ ready for it.

She didn't even like it. It hurt and was extremely uncomfortable. He kept apologizing. He asked a few times if she wanted him to stop, even after he had started. She tried to give him a reassuring smile and shook her head, encouraging him to continue even though it was already lasting longer than she thought it was supposed to. They had gotten that far already, and she had heard the first time hurt anyway so she figured she might as well get it all out of the way now and maybe next time it would be better.

At the moment, she seriously doubted if she wanted there to be a next time, at least for a while. It seemed to take him forever to finally finish. She thought it was supposed to be a _lot_ faster than that. Maybe he just didn't get off as fast as some other guys did. Hazel and Penelope had wasted no time in talking to her about sex and everything that went with it as soon as they learned of her new boyfriend. They told her not to expect too much from her first time because it would probably hurt and because the guy probably wouldn't last long enough to make her feel much of anything good. But they promised it would get better.

He had almost immediately dozed off afterward. She tried to do the same, but her mind wouldn't stop racing. She wanted to get up. She wanted to leave. She wanted to run to a bathroom and shower and maybe even cry because this was not how she had always imagined it to be.

She wondered if he would be okay with it if she asked him to wait to do it again. The way he treated her while they were doing it, he probably would.

And his original reaction to her decision told her that he probably would too. He had actually been the one uncertain about taking this step. He even tried to convince her to wait. But she had insisted.

He wasn't much for foreplay—a term Penelope coined as essential. He actually barely touched any part of her body. They just made out before stripping and getting down to business. In fact, for all the talk most guys made about breasts, she always assumed her first sexual experience would include major breast attention—even if they weren't mammoth-sized like Serena's.

All in all, the encounter was disappointing, and she still felt a little sore.

"Asher?" she said.

No response.

She slid off the bed, not having to worry about disturbing his arms or other body parts because he hadn't reached for her at all to cuddle or anything when he was done.

She started looking for her clothing, pulling each item on as quickly as possible. She brushed her bangs to the side and slid her headband firmly in place.

"Asher," she said more firmly, bending over to shake his arm gently.

"Hmm?" came a murmur before he opened his eyes.

"I have to go home now," she said, forcing a smile. "Take me?" She needed to get home before her father or brother started to wonder where she was at. She didn't want to see either of them that evening if she could help it. Dan was supposed to be at a poetry reading with Sarah, so maybe she'd get home before the moody artists finished spewing their boring pretentious rhymes.

"Oh… okay," he got up and pulled on his clothes just as quickly as she had.

She walked into her shoes and bent down to retrieve her purse.

Neither of them really looked at each other while getting their things together. Jenny felt so awkward,

Why had she decided to do this? Why did she think it would cement her place as queen? Why did she care _this_ much about being queen of some stupid high school hierarchy club?

If she had known how horrible she would feel once the deed was done, she would have never pursued it. She remembered how Sarah told her that being official would probably tilt the scales in her favor.

After what she'd been through, she was determined that she would achieve it now. If she didn't become queen and boot Blair back down the steps, then all this would have _really _been for nothing. And she didn't think she could live with that.

* * *

'"Are you out of your mind!"

Serena sighed. She knew this would be the reaction from Dan the second the words left her mouth. It was Friday morning. Chuck was leaving later that night with Eric and Bart for Bart's bachelor trip. Originally Eric wasn't going to go, but he begged their mother at the last minute.

She had been getting calls and texts from Georgina non-stop to talk to her, but she was keeping vigilant, following Chuck's advice, to _not_ talk to her. Georgina was surely convinced by now that Blair and Serena's friendship was over and that Serena was extremely pissed off at Georgina because of it.

"Jenny is our only hope of doing this without tipping Georgina off," she explained.

"I don't want my sister involved in this," he insisted.

"If we can't erase all traces of those pictures, it's only a matter of time before she figures out that the fight between me and B was staged. Then she might really involve Jenny in this. I don't want to see anyone else get hurt. Please, Dan?"

"I… I have to think about it," he said, running a hand through his hair, frustration showing.

"There isn't any time," she said.

"Why not?"

"Because Chuck leaves tonight. We're already cutting it close by waiting so late. We need Jenny on board _now_ so we can get Georgina to go to her party."

"Serena…" Dan knew how important this all was, and he understood why involving someone else was key to keeping everything under the radar from the psycho. He just _really _didn't want to involve his sister. "I don't want her to get hurt."

"She won't," Serena insisted. "I know Jenny. She can pull this off. And if there is _any_ sign of danger, we'll call it all off."

"So now there's _danger?_"

"No!" she exclaimed. "Georgina has just been using rumors and blackmail to freak us out. She hasn't done anything to suggest bodily harm. She wouldn't go that far. I was just saying that to make a point." Well, the box of baby doll body parts _could_ suggest bodily harm... but not in the context Blair received it in.

"Serena—"

"What's going on, guys?"

Serena and Dan both snapped around to look at the girl who just emerged from her room, dressed and ready for the day.

"Good morning!" they said simultaneously.

"Okay… Good morning," Jenny returned, thinking something was up but instead of trying to pry, she just went into the kitchen to get some juice and a breakfast bar. She didn't want to pry because then Dan might decide to pry even more into why she had been so quiet all night. Of course, if all went well that morning at school Dan was going to know what happened anyway. Prolonging _that_ conversation as long as possible was a very good thing.

Serena glanced meaningfully at Dan.

Dan took a deep breath and against his better judgment, gave in.

"We need your help."

* * *

Jenny grasped Asher's hand and got out of the limo after taking a deep breath to fortify herself.

She had two roles to play today.

The loving girlfriend who couldn't wait to tell her friends about what transpired the previous evening with her amazing boyfriend.

And the friend to a psychotic girl who would stop at nothing to ruin the relationship between her brother and his girlfriend.

Serena was her friend and she was already hit hard enough by the loss of Blair's friendship. Jenny could use this time to create a stronger bond with Serena so that when the minions accepted Serena back into their arms—after Jenny knocked them through a loop with her perfect prince and perfect party—Serena and Jenny could unite against Blair, once again knocking her off her pedestal.

She also relished the idea of getting one over on the brunette psycho who had managed to plant the stupid idea in her head that she needed to sleep with her boyfriend to cement her place in society.

She leaned into Asher's embrace, kissing him with as much feeling as she could muster, putting on the show for her friends on the steps.

* * *

**SPOTTED: Apparently our Little J got her V-Card swiped at A's register last night. Welcome to womanhood, J. A party is set for this evening, ready to celebrate…and maybe even attend a coronation? Reigning Queen B, watch your back. She has the king, the royal subjects, and… I think she just declared war.**

* * *

"Is this true?"

Jenny breathed a sigh of relief. She had been trying to avoid Dan all day since the Gossip Girl blast. She hadn't responded to any of his text messages and she had become adapt at ducking into classrooms to avoid her passing brother.

"Eric! Hi!" she smiled at her friend, the only one she has never had to play games with or pretend to be something she's not.

"Is this true?" he asked again, barely concealing his agitation, holding up his phone with the latest post written out on it.

She shrugged, "Yes? What's wrong?"

Eric wouldn't look at her. "I've been trying to talk to you all week, why have you been avoiding me?"

"I wasn't… not really," she said, thinking back. She hadn't really meant to _not_ talk to him, but she was so busy with Asher and her friends and plans for the party. She guessed she'd forgotten to get back to him. "I'm sorry, but we can hang out tomorrow! Or, you can come to the party tonight! I would _love_ for you to be there!"

"I just _really_ needed to talk to you," he said, wincing and still not looking at her as he put his phone away in the pocket of his uniform slacks.

"Like I said, tomorrow or—"

"Just… " he sighed and looked heavenward. "I can't, I'm going away this weekend."

"Well, when you get back for sure!" she said. She actually _really_ wanted to talk to him now that she thought about it…he was the only one she could be completely candid with about her present circumstances. "I really want to talk to you about… stuff too."

Was it her imagination or did his eyes look a little glassy?

"That's… fine," he mumbled. "I'll call you."

"Walk me to class?" she pointed down the hall, not wanting to relinquish him just yet.

"Going that way," he nodded in the opposite direction before taking off.

"Bye…" she trailed off, growing a little worried but deciding if it was something really bad he would tell her now instead of waiting until he got back.

* * *

"Okay, I'll get the computer; you go through her drawers and stuff!" Serena ran straight to the desk against the wall in the tiny apartment. She knew it was more likely the pictures would be on there, so she made sure she got there first. She just prayed Chuck didn't find anything else incriminating to Blair during his search.

He closed the door, frowning at his future sister, before doing as she bid.

"You're still trying to hide them from me, aren't you?" he said, amused.

"Yes, because you're that horrible," she bluffed. "In fact, if you find _any_ pictures, don't look at them. Just tell me and _I'll_ do the honors."

"R_ight_," he smirked. He started rifling through her dresser drawers, shuddering when he opened the top to reveal her lingerie drawer. He took out a handkerchief to use to move the items around. Usually he didn't mind running his hands over silky sexy outfits, but this was _Georgina_, and he'd rather not touch anything that had been against _her_ body ever again.

"Just look as quickly as possible. I don't want to be here longer than I have to," she said.

"Relax," he said, slamming the drawer shut and moving to the next one. "The landlord won't say a word after the wad of cash I slipped him. And little J will give you the heads up if there's a problem with our resident crazy person."

"Just hurry!"

* * *

The party was going better than even _she _hoped. Some part of her thought that Blair might try to crash, but thus far nothing. And Asher was being absolutely amazing. The girls were convinced that he was charming and elegant and the perfect catch.

She had been _continuing_ to avoid her brother who had been calling and texting her so much she had to turn the phone off for a while during the party preparations. She turned it back on only to talk to Serena and 'Sarah'. She knew her role in this. She just needed to switch out the sim card in Georgina's phone and then manage to destroy the phone through some freak accident. She would have rather just destroy the phone, but Serena insisted that destroying the phone didn't mean that the sim card was destroyed. So, she would do as Serena asked. This crazy girl, 'Sarah' aka Georgina, had been playing with everyone. Jenny would not allow her to use her brother or his girlfriend again!

Now she just needed to get Georgina to set her purse, which held the phone Jenny saw her put in there, to the side so she could get to that sim card.

"Asher," she said, smiling at her boyfriend and dragging her new 'friend' with her in front of him. "This is Sarah."

Sarah had opted to put her hair up in a long dark green wrap, which almost everyone at the party thought was weird. Jenny had understood immediately that there were probably some people at this party who would know that 'Sarah' was actually Georgina Sparks. Since Serena had given her all the details of this Georgina girl earlier that morning, she wasn't surprised at the wrap. _Nor_ was she surprised by the makeup that was applied in such a way that even Jenny might not have recognized her face if the girl hadn't walked right up to her when she arrived. Apparently Georgina Sparks was a master of disguises as well.

"Hello," he said politely, if a bit put off by the strange girl.

"Jenny has told me so much about you!" Georgina gushed. "I'm so glad you two decided to make your relationship official! Was it hard taking that step, coming out?" She knew her eyes almost glinted with glee when Asher seemed to pale in front of her.

"I, um, uh," Asher's careful demeanor floundered for the first time that evening.

"I mean, coming out as an official couple, of course!" Georgina said. "You two are so perfect together. And this party is so great! Tasteful and elegant. I'm sure Jenny took care of all of that, because you're such a _man_ you probably couldn't be bothered by all the little details like decorations and ordering cocktails," she flirted with as much friendly banter as possible. She wanted to emphasis the _cock_ part of that word so badly, but didn't want to give too much away. She wanted to make Asher uncomfortable, not make him think she knew more than she should.

"Actually…" Jenny was going to point out that Asher actually had very specific details he wanted for his party, but Asher interrupted her.

"Jenny _did_ do an amazing job!" Asher said forcefully, trying to smile at his girlfriend.

"Thanks," Jenny smiled. "Oh, I see one of the wait-staff with an empty tray. Obviously he's a little lost and needs direction. Asher, honey, be a dear and show Sarah, here, how proper gentleman dance with ladies on the Upper West Side."

Asher looked like he would rather systematically slice paper cuts into each of his fingertips than dance with the strange girl.

"Would you?" Georgina said sweetly. "I've noticed you haven't been on the dance floor much. Haven't found your inner dancing queen tonight? Well, with your very own queen on your arm, I suppose you already found her."

"I'll take that for you if you want," Jenny offered, motioning to the purse in the girl's grasp.

"Would you?" she smiled, handing it over as she took Asher's reluctantly proffered arm.

Jenny pretended to walk over to a man carrying a tray, staring back at Georgina and Asher the entire time before opening the latch and sliding her hand into the bag. She reached around for the familiar feel of a phone.

Then froze when her hand was greeted with a different sort of metal.

She looked inside and nearly dropped the bag.

_Oh My God!_

* * *

Serena jumped and hit her knee on the bottom of the desk when her cell phone started blaring.

"It's Jenny," Serena said to Chuck who was in the process of cleaning out Georgina's closet.

He sighed and started putting things back where he found them as quickly and accurately as possible, ticked at the fact that he had found nothing.

"What's wrong?" she whispered, flipping the phone open.

"_Serena!_" Jenny whisper-shrieked. "This girl is bad news! You need to forget all about this plan and just get out of there! Don't do anything to let her know you were there! Just get out now!"

"What's going on?" Serena asked, heart in her throat. "Were you not able to get the card? Were you caught?"

"No, but," Jenny's breath hitched. "There's a _gun _in her purse. A tiny little metal _killing_ thing and she brought it to _my_ party, and _oh my God_, if she has a gun then what is she _really_ capable of? Just get out of there! Forget about the video and go to the police now before someone really does get hurt!"

Serena gasped and put her hand over her mouth. She had promised Dan there would be no danger, but this was definitely _danger _territory.

"Don't do anything! Just give the purse back to her when the dance is over. Act cool. Normal. Natural. I don't want you involved anymore, Jenny! Do not, I repeat, do _not_ do anything at all to even _hint_ that you know her true identity! Do you understand?" she spoke a mile a minute and she started frantically putting things in the desk back where she found them, praying that she got everything right.

Chuck raised his arms in question, wanting to know what was going on. Serena held up a finger and continued. "We'll be leaving immediately. Don't worry. Just forget I ever told you any of this. Understand?" _Crap_, she said "we'll"! Jenny wasn't supposed to know that Chuck was with her! She was only supposed to think that Dan and Serena knew about the 'video', and the plan wasn't for Dan to be with her. Hopefully Jenny would be too distraught to notice Serena's slip up.

"But, I… and Dan… and you…"

The poor girl was only fifteen. Guns were scary at any age, but to be that close to one had to be terrifying for her. She would have no problem facing down adversity when a reputation was on the line, but when it came to life and death situations, the tables turned completely.

"Jenny!" Serena said sharply. "_Calm down!_ Do you _understand!_"

"Yes," the girl whispered.

"Can you do what I told you to do?" she demanded more than asked.

"Yes."

Serena ended the call. "We're leaving now. Make sure everything is _exactly_ the way it was when we got here."

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Jenny found a lot more in that purse than just her cell phone."

* * *

Chuck shifted his leg, trying to stop the nervous twitter that was making him shake incessantly against the smooth leather of the limo's seat.

Serena had filled him in on the latest development before deciding to run off to talk to Blair. Chuck wanted to go, but there was no way he could get out of this bachelor weekend. Bart Bass didn't make that many demands, but this had been one of them.

He looked over to the dark blonde boy sitting quietly across from him. His future step brother looked glum and moody. Not a good mix for the long journey ahead of them. But try as he might, Chuck couldn't start a conversation. It wasn't often that he worried about other people, but this time he was worried about everyone.

Georgina Sparks was a thundering loony, but until today she hadn't really been dangerous. Now all bets were off on the outcome of this mess.

He told Serena to just go to the police. He told her that no pictures of Blair kissing Georgina were worth anyone's lives. He assumed it would be easy to convince Blair of this once Serena explained what Jenny had found.

He was just waiting to hear from Serena before he called his guy at the police station to put a security detail on both Serena and Blair. Fortunately, Eric was right there with him so he didn't have to worry about the rest of his family. He would have already called for the bodyguard detail, but he knew Georgina was keeping a close eye on everything going on with Serena. He didn't want her to figure out that the girls and Eric had someone following their every move. She might step up _her_ game then.

"So, ready for the best weekend of our lives?" Chuck tried to give his best 'oh yeah' expression along with his signature smirk.

He didn't have to even try with the facial expressions because Eric was in his own little world, fiddling with his cell phone.

"Expecting a call?"

Eric shook his head and tossed the phone on the seat next to him. "No."

"So, ready?" What was bothering Eric? And why wasn't he telling Chuck? Since their parents had gotten together, they had formed a bond that almost felt like a real brotherly connection... even though Chuck didn't really have any idea what that was _really_ supposed to feel like.

"…Sure."

* * *

Serena looked at her best friend who was quietly sitting on her bed, staring at the wall across the room.

She immediately told Blair everything that had transpired when she arrived. Now she was waiting for Blair to tell her what to do. From the beginning Serena had been ready to go to the authorities over the Pete situation. The only thing holding her back was Blair's secret. And it was a doozy.

She felt so terrible for Blair. She'd been through so much this year. Everything with Nate, and then Chuck, and then Chuck ruining her reputation. And now Georgina was threatening her. She was forced to have a very public argument with her best friend and had to keep pretending that they were no longer friends. Georgina didn't even know the real truth behind Blair's secret, but she knew enough that the damage would be even worse than Chuck's tipping off Gossip Girl to Blair's sexual activities.

Blair's face finally smoothed out, as if she had come to a decision.

"I'll tell him… them."

"You'll…?"

"I can't let Georgina keep terrorizing everyone, not if she's really dangerous. My secrets aren't worth anyone's life," Blair gave a sad bemused look. "Even if it's little Jenny Humphrey's."

They sat in silence for a few minutes.

"It was Nate's, wasn't it?" she finally whispered.

"How'd you know?" Blair whispered shakily.

"The timing," Serena explained. "You were with Chuck before the ball. You lost it over spring break. Almost four months. You wouldn't have recovered as quickly, and it wouldn't have been a miscarriage. It would have been more like a still birth." She had looked some things up right after learning of Blair's secret.

"Right…not as quickly…" Blair trailed off.

Serena knew those words were double edged. Blair may have recovered physically, but mentally she was still an emotional wreck. She might have been making strides to put it out of her mind, to try to control her emotions regarding the loss of the baby, but she was never going to completely forget.

Maybe revealing the truth would be for the best.

"I'll tell Nate… I'll go tonight, I guess," Blair murmured.

"What about Chuck?" Serena asked. Because even if the baby wasn't his, it would be better for Blair to _tell_ him that before Georgina released a photo that indicated Blair had an abortion. That way he didn't mistakenly think she had aborted his child.

"I'll tell him when he gets back?" Blair said, uncertain.

"Okay…" she trailed off.

"What?"

"Nothing… I'll wait until you talk to Chuck before I do anything."

"What exactly are you going to do?"

"Tell them what happened last year. Tell _both_ our parts in it," Serena said. "And tell them about all the stuff she's been doing."

"Do you really think that will work? Do you really think they'll believe you?" Blair asked.

"I… I don't know," Serena murmured. And she didn't know. There were so many things wrong with this situation. She just couldn't stand the thought that her friends were all hurting because of her. But if the police didn't take heed, and didn't arrest Georgina, she would be setting a loose cannon off into the middle of everything.

"What does Dan say?" Blair asked.

"I haven't talked to him since me and Chuck went to her place," she said. She'd been putting it off as long as possible. She told him Jenny would be safe, but now she wasn't sure. She was a little surprised that Blair would care what Dan thought, but it actually made sense because he seemed to know more of the logistics of all the legal stuff.

She opened her silent phone and saw that she had quite a few texts waiting from her boyfriend. Maybe he already knew what was happening from Jenny, or maybe he was just worried beyond belief because he hadn't heard anything. She was about to start reading them when another text came through.

**Ur friendship w B may b done, but Im not. Ur my best friend S. Stop ignorin me… while u still have some friends left.**

Serena shakily tried to close the message, but her fingers weren't working.

"What?" Blair said, noticing the way her friend was shaking.

Serena showed her the message.

"Who's left for her to possibly torture?" Blair said, exasperated and worried. "She's hurt me, Chuck, Nate, thinks she has Dan. She's even taken small shots at Vanessa. As far as we know there's no reason for her to go after Jenny. Who else could she possibly mess with!"

"Eric." Serena said, closing her eyes as she realized that she hadn't once thought about her going after him since the night Georgina faked her out into thinking she was going after him but really meant Chuck.

"I can't take the risk, B!" Serena suddenly cried out, struggling with her hysteria. "If the police do nothing, she could hurt him! What if she saved her biggest play for last? What then? Oh my God!" She was shaking.

Blair wrapped her arms around the blonde. "We'll figure this out. They have to help, right?"

"_Why won't she just go back to wherever she came from!_' Serena yelled. "Why is she even here!"

Blair just kept holding her, not knowing what to say.

Serena read the threatening message again.

Then it hit her.

"I know what to do."

* * *

_To be continued…_


End file.
